Affiliations: [a] Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center, 7601 E. Imperial Highway, CART, Downey, CA 90242, USA | [b] Bowman Gray School of Medicine, GIMG, Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA | [c] Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center, Pediatric Department, 900 Building, 7601 East Imperial Highway, Downey, CA 90242, USA
Abstract: While early independent mobility may have positive effects on a child's development, it is still difficult for a clinician to determine when a child is developmentally ready to operate a powered wheelchair. The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center at Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center in Downey, California has undertaken a project to develop a cognitive assessment battery to predict a young child's functional performance in a wheelchair. The first phase of this project – the development of a powered mobility program (PMP) – is presented here. A 34-item assessment battery was developed through a task analysis and input from professionals who train children in mobility skills. The battery includes basic, structured and unstructured wheelchair skills. A flexible approach for administering the PMP is presented, as well as findings from twenty-four children between the ages of 18 and 36 months who were evaluated using the PMP.
Keywords: Powered mobility program, Young children, Cognitive readiness, Wheelchair training
