Wheelchair User's Barriers in Physical Activity: Rural VS. Urban Area

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Individuals with disabilities experience more significant challenges in carrying out physical activity than the general population. Previous studies have identified physical activity and fitness levels without measuring barriers to physical activity. This study examines how wheelchair users assess obstacles to physical activity and looks for the significant factors that hinder the biological activity of wheelchair users in urban and rural areas. The method in this research is a cross-sectional study. An online survey was used to obtain information on physical activity barriers in wheelchair users. A total of 81 respondents consisting of 40 wheelchair users from rural areas and 41 from urban areas, filled out the Barriers Physical Activity Questionnaire Mobility Impairment (BPAQ-MI) with a response rate of 70% during one month of data collection. The analysis data technique is mean, percentage, and an independent sample's T-test to compare physical activity barriers between wheelchair users in urban and rural areas. The chief obstacles to physical activity are friends and family as a support system (p<0.05), lack of public facilities (p<0.05), lack of fitness facilities and infrastructure (p<0,05), staff/program/policy (p<0.05), and community (p<0.05). The conclusion is that wheelchair users in rural areas have more significant barriers to physical activity than those in urban areas. Improving support from family, friends, environment, social policies, and a disability-friendly physical environment can be critical points in increasing the biological activity of wheelchair users in rural areas.