Development and consumer validation of the Functional Evaluation in a Wheelchair (FEW) instrument

Mills, Tamara; Holm, Margo B.; Trefler, Elaine; Schmeler, Mark R.; Fitzgerald, Shirley G.; Boninger, Michael L.

doi:10.1080/09638280110066334

Cited by 70 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Previous studies have shown that reaching is 1 of the 10 important functional tasks for an individual to perform seated in a wheelchair (18,22,23). Sprigle and colleagues (23) investigated reach in SCI subjects and the effects of differing seating cushions and backrest heights.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With the TLSO on, subjects were significantly slower in donning a shirt (P , 0.05), donning pants (P , 0.05), performing even-level transfers (P , 0.01), performing uneven-level transfers (P , 0.01), and propelling a wheelchair (P , 0.01). Although this study provided insight into the effects of the TLSO on timeliness of task completion, it did not study the effect of TLSO on upper extremity reaching, a task identified as important among persons using wheelchairs (18). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to quantify the effect of a TLSO on the reachable workspace volumes and reach of children with SCI.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effect of Thoracolumbosacral Orthoses on Reachable Workspace Volumes in Children With Spinal Cord Injury

Sison-Williamson

Bagley

Hongo

et al. 2007

The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine

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Background/Objective: Wheelchair users often use trunk motion to facilitate or augment their upper extremity reach. Children with spinal cord injury (SCI) are often prescribed thoracic lumbar sacral orthoses (TLSO) to delay or prevent spinal curve progression. The impact of wearing a TLSO while reaching has not been studied. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to see the quantitative effect of the TLSO on reachable workspace volumes and reach of children with SCI.Methods: Twenty children with SCI aged 5 to 18 years participated in the present study. Three-dimensional upper extremity motion analysis was used to assess the reachable workspace patterns of children reaching for targets at varying heights. Volumes in and out of TLSO and kinematic ranges of reach were statistically analyzed using paired Student's t tests with a P value set at 0.05.Results: Reachable workspace volumes were significantly greater for the non-TLSO condition compared with the TLSO condition (112,836 vs 80,711 cm 3 ; P ¼ 0.0002; a decrement of 28%). Anterior posterior and medial lateral ranges of reach were statistically greater in the non-TLSO condition (P ¼ 0.002, P ¼ 0.01). Nondominant hand medial lateral reaches were statistically greater in the non-TLSO condition (P ¼ 0.003). Dominant hand anterior posterior reaches were greater in the non-TLSO condition (P ¼ 0.009). Conclusions:Results suggest the reachable workspace of children with SCI is lessened with the use of a TLSO. This may be an important negative factor for brace compliance in children with SCI. The TLSO interferes with their ability to reach; therefore, children may prefer not to wear the orthosis.J Spinal Cord Med. 2007;30:S184-S191

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Thoracolumbosacral Orthoses on Reachable Workspace Volumes in Children With Spinal Cord Injury

Sison-Williamson

Bagley

Hongo

et al. 2007

The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine

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“…Therefore, for higher ecological validity, the evaluation process should include "field trials" in which the DSS is used by target users for extended periods of time outside the laboratory. An evaluation of the DSS in real-world settings should also evaluate the users' ability to function when using the navigation assistance from the DSS with instruments such as Functioning Everyday With a Wheelchair [30][31] or Power-Mobility Indoor Driving Assessment [32]. Further, anecdotal data obtained during the interviews will provide investigators with additional insight into specific situations that lead to system failures (collisions or software crashes), difficulties encountered when transporting the system, and problems positioning users within the chair.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of semiautonomous navigation assistance system for power wheelchairs with blindfolded nondisabled individuals

Sharma

Simpson²,

LoPresti³

et al. 2010

JRRD

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Abstract-Some individuals with disabilities are denied powered mobility because they lack the visual, motor, and/or cognitive skills required to safely operate a power wheelchair. The Drive-Safe System (DSS) is an add-on, distributed, sharedcontrol navigation assistance system for power wheelchairs intended to provide safe and independent mobility to such individuals. The DSS is a human-machine system in which the user is responsible for high-level control of the wheelchair, such as choosing the destination, path planning, and basic navigation actions, while the DSS overrides unsafe maneuvers through autonomous collision avoidance, wall following, and door crossing. In this project, the DSS was clinically evaluated in a controlled laboratory with blindfolded, nondisabled individuals. Further, these individuals' performance with the DSS was compared with standard cane use for navigation assistance by people with visual impairments. Results indicate that compared with a cane, the DSS significantly reduced the number of collisions. Users rated the DSS favorably even though they took longer to navigate the same obstacle course than they would have using a standard long cane. Participants experienced less physical demand, effort, and frustration when using the DSS as compared with a cane. These findings suggest that the DSS can be a viable powered mobility solution for wheelchair users with visual impairments.

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“…While this is clearly the intent of wheelchair provision though the enablement of mobility, most existing measures of wheelchair outcomes evaluate consumers' capacity [49] rather than their performance of valued life-activities. Of the studies included in this scoping review, only one study used a measure that included Activity and Participation related items, the Function Every day in a Wheelchair Instrument (FEW) [50]. All other measures were either of consumer satisfaction, or impairments in body structures or body functions.…”

Section: Outcome Measurementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Telehealth delivery of remote assessment of wheelchair and seating needs for adults and children: A scoping review (Preprint)

Graham¹,

Boland²,

Grainger³

et al. 2018

Preprint

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Background: Assessment of the wheelchair and seating needs of people with complex disabilities requires health professionals to have advanced training and experience, creating difficulties in accessing such specialist services for wheelchair users living outside of metropolitan areas. Use of telehealth technologies to enable remote assessment has been suggested as one way to improve accessibility to specialist assessment and reduce the cost of services, however no synthesis of this research is currently available to guide practice or research development.Objective: This scoping review synthesizes research to date on the effects and processes of telehealth enabled wheelchair and seating assessment and the perceptions of wheelchair users and healthcare providers of this mode of service delivery. Methods:A systematic search and scoping review of peer-reviewed publications and theses was undertaken. Five databases were searched including CINAHL, Embase, Medline, Psychinfo and Scopus followed by hand searching of reference lists and forward citations.Data extraction and synthesis was organised around each research objective. Results:From an initial identification of 1801 publications, 9 studies published in 13 documents met the inclusion criteria. Study quality and study design varied considerably. The effect of telehealth compared to in-person assessment was insignificant in all studies that compared effectiveness (n=2) in relation to wheelchair-user and assessor rated variables.Telehealth assessment improved accessibility for some wheelchair users (n=1). However the process of telehealth that was applied to wheelchair assessment was inadequately described in all studies. Qualitative studies (n= 2) revealed that wheelchair-users appraised telehealth wheelchair assessment more positively than assessors. Non-specialist, assisting assessors appraised telehealth assessment more positively than specialist assessors. It appeared that each stakeholder group appraised telehealth based on different criteria including accessibility, professional supportiveness and technical accuracy. No studies examined funder views.Conclusions: Preliminary research suggests telehealth wheelchair assessment may be as effective as in-person assessment. Furthermore, this approach is viewed favorably by wheelchair users and non-specialist assessors, while expert assessors have some hesitations.The literature to date has not provided adequate descriptions of the process undertaken during 3 remote wheelchair assessment. The process of remote wheelchair assessment requires clarification to further understandings of how telehealth can be used for greatest effect in this area.

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Development and consumer validation of the Functional Evaluation in a Wheelchair (FEW) instrument

Abstract: The items on the FEW focus on the interaction between the consumer, the technology, and the milieu. Consumers viewed the overall importance of FEW categories for seating-mobility system users differently than when they self-administered the FEW.

Cited by 70 publications

References 3 publications

Effect of Thoracolumbosacral Orthoses on Reachable Workspace Volumes in Children With Spinal Cord Injury

Effect of Thoracolumbosacral Orthoses on Reachable Workspace Volumes in Children With Spinal Cord Injury

Evaluation of semiautonomous navigation assistance system for power wheelchairs with blindfolded nondisabled individuals

Telehealth delivery of remote assessment of wheelchair and seating needs for adults and children: A scoping review (Preprint)

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