An eHealth program to enhance adaptation and management for wheelchair users
Thousands of people across Canada receive a manual wheelchair to address mobility impairments, but limited training inhibits their ability to independently, safely, and effectively use their wheelchair. Suboptimal wheelchair use can reduce physical and psychosocial wellbeing, but access to additional training is accompanied by significant barriers.
To address this, “Training to Enhance Adaptation and Management for Wheelchair users” (TEAM Wheels) is a 4-week, community-based, tailored eHealth program integrating peer-led and independent home training components to optimize learning, while limiting the time demands of health care professionals and mitigating additional environmental and economic barriers. The program was delivered using a computer tablet (sent to participants for the duration of the program) with the custom TEAM Wheels application and a video conferencing application. The TEAM Wheels application included a structured curriculum with over 150 videos featuring education, demonstrations, and training exercises. The video conferencing component consisted of three video calls with an experienced manual wheelchair user who could provide individualised orientations, goals, and strategies.
Conducted by three primary sites (Vancouver, Winnipeg, and Quebec City), this collaborative randomised controlled trial recruited participants to evaluate the TEAM-Wheels program. Each participant completed three data collection time points, consisting of self-report measures and objective wheelchair use measurements. Results coming soon!
