Establishing User Needs for a Stability Assessment Tool to Guide Wheelchair Prescription

Purpose The WheelSense project aims to develop a system for assessing the stability andperformance of wheelchairs through a user-centred design process. This study sought to captureuser needs and define the specification for the system.Method A mixed methods approach was adopted. An online survey was completed by 98participants working in wheelchair provision. The results were built upon through 10 semistructuredinterviews and one focus group (n=5) with professionals working in wheelchairprovision in three NHS Trusts in the UK.Results The results provided a picture of the current UK practise in stability testing. Issueswith the reliability and usefulness of the existing methods used to assess the stability andperformance of wheelchairs were highlighted. Requirements for a new system were ascertained.These included improved accuracy of tipping angles, features to support record keeping,improved patient/carer education support and ability to model or predict user-wheelchair systemperformance in different configurations.Conclusions The paper concludes that there is a need for improved tools to determine thestability of the user-wheelchair system and support the prescription process, to ensure patientsafety and optimum equipment performance. A list of requirements has been produced to guidethe future development of WheelSense. Publisher Statement: This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Disability and Rehabilitation on 03 Jul 2015, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.3109/17483107.2015.1063019