The factors associated with community participation: Employment and education of people with disabilities in Turkey

The differences in demographics, fear of falling, transfer quality and participation enfranchisement between manual and power wheelchair users with multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury

PURPOSE

To examine the differences in demographics, fear of falling (FOF), transfer quality and participation enfranchisement between manual and power wheelchair users with multiple sclerosis (MS) and spinal cord injury (SCI).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Secondary data analysis including 126 manual or power wheelchair users with MS and SCI (median age, 53.00 years, IQR = 24.00). Demographic information including age, gender, height, weight and disability duration was collected. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated for all participants. Participation enfranchisement was examined using both subscales (Importance and Control) of the enfranchisement scale of the Community Participation Indicator (CPI). FOF was assessed using the Spinal Cord Injury-Falls Concern Scale (SCI-FCS) and transfer quality was assessed using the Transfer Assessment Instrument (TAI) 3.0 and 4.0. Mann-Whitney's U-tests or independent samples t-tests and chi-square were used to analyse the differences between continuous variables and categorical variables, respectively.

RESULTS

Fifty-seven percent of participants were manual wheelchair users. There were significant differences in most demographic information except for weight and disability duration. Significant differences were also found for BMI (t = 1.06, p = 0.04), CPI-Importance (U = 1282.50, p < 0.01), CPI-Control (U = 1165.50, p < 0.01) and SCI-FCS (t = 4.08, p < 0.01). Manual wheelchair users outperformed power wheelchair users in all outcomes analysed except the TAI (p = 0.18).

CONCLUSIONS

Power wheelchairs users presented with a higher BMI, reported lower participation enfranchisement, and reported higher levels of FOF compared to manual wheelchair users. The findings may help clinicians to develop targeted rehabilitation goals specific for power and manual wheelchair users with MS and SCI.

Community mobility and participation assessment of manual wheelchair users: a review of current techniques and challenges

According to the World Health Organization, hundreds of individuals commence wheelchair use daily, often due to an injury such as spinal cord injury or through a condition such as a stroke. However, manual wheelchair users typically experience reductions in individual community mobility and participation. In this review, articles from 2017 to 2023 were reviewed to identify means of measuring community mobility and participation of manual wheelchair users, factors that can impact these aspects, and current rehabilitation techniques for improving them. The selected articles document current best practices utilizing self-surveys, in-clinic assessments, and remote tracking through GPS and accelerometer data, which rehabilitation specialists can apply to track their patients' community mobility and participation accurately. Furthermore, rehabilitation methods such as wheelchair training programs, brain-computer interface triggered functional electric stimulation therapy, and community-based rehabilitation programs show potential to improve the community mobility and participation of manual wheelchair users. Recommendations were made to highlight potential avenues for future research.

Establishment in productive occupations and perceived work ability among former students with special educational needs one year after upper secondary education

BACKGROUND

Establishment in productive occupations i.e. work and further studies, is challenging for students who experience special educational needs (SEN).

OBJECTIVE

The study aim was to investigate productive occupations and perceived work ability one year after upper secondary education among former students with SEN who had received a student-centred information and communication technology (ICT) intervention.

METHODS

Questionnaire data on productive occupations (n = 81) were complemented with the semi-structured Worker Role Interview (WRI) concerning perceived work ability (n = 20), in an embedded mixed methods design. Group comparisons between participants who were and were not established in productive occupations were performed. Written notes from the WRI were analysed with a deductive content analysis.

RESULTS

Findings demonstrated that almost two-thirds (63% n = 51) of the former students with SEN were established in productive occupations. The established group had to a higher extent obtained pass grades and had to a lesser extent received time-assisting ICT. Managing daily routines in combination with a productive role in a satisfactory manner was perceived as most challenging for the participants in relation to their work ability.

CONCLUSION

The results indicate that students with SEN need person-centred support to handle difficulties both in and outside upper secondary school to promote the transition from school to establishment in productive occupations.

Adaptive Sports in Spinal Cord Injury: a Systematic Review

Purpose of Review

Recent Findings

Summary

Exploring the perspectives of prosthetic and orthotic users: past and present experiences and insights for the future

PURPOSE

The aim of this work was to qualitatively explore the personal perspectives of prosthetic and orthotic users, in the context of their past and present experiences and understand their insights for the future.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A narrative exploration study design, employing a phenomenological approach was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three female and two male prosthetic and orthotic users from Australia and the United Kingdom. Interviews were analysed, coded and key themes and sub-themes identified.

RESULTS

Three themes were identified. The Maximising Opportunity theme linked sub-themes of recreation and pushing boundaries. The Health Care Network theme included sub-themes of communication, peer support and building a team. The final theme, Changes over time, included sub-themes of disability perception, advice and advancements over time.

CONCLUSION

Prosthetic and orthotic users identified that there had been vast changes in disability perception, disability rights, and their role in the health care system, along with the variety of technology and materials available. Key findings were that prosthetic and orthotic users want to be listened to, considered central to the health care team, and had a deep understanding of their own health care needs.Implications for rehabilitationProsthesis and orthosis users want to be listened to and considered central within the health care team.Attending medical and allied health teams must recognise that prosthesis and orthosis users have a fundamental understanding of their own health care needs.Themes, whilst potentially generalisable, are derived from specific individuals and may particularly relate to these individuals.

Reliability and Validity of the Turkish Version of the Oxford Participation and Activities Questionnaire in Older People

Background

Activities and participation play important roles in the maintenance of healthy aging. The maintenance of these factors optimizes social life to increase the quality of life with aging. However, there is a lack of questionnaires in Turkish to evaluate activity and participation among older people. This study translated and cross-culturally adapted the Oxford Participation and Activities Questionnaire (Ox-PAQ) into Turkish and investigated its psychometric properties in the older adult population.

Methods

The Turkish version of the Ox-PAQ was produced after a translation and back-translation process. The Ox-PAQ was administered to 230 and 60 individuals for construct validity and reliability analyses, respectively. To assess the test-retest reliability of the Turkish Ox-PAQ, the questionnaire was reapplied 7 days after the first interview. Cronbach’s alpha (α) was used to evaluate the internal consistency. The Ox-PAQ was compared to the Short Form-12 and the Katz Index of Independence in Activities of Daily Living Scale to determine its validity.

Results

The Turkish Ox-PAQ showed excellent internal consistency (α=0.98) and test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.98, 0.96, and 0.97 for the subscales of routine activity level, social engagement, and emotional well-being, respectively). In the validity analysis, factor analysis demonstrated a probable structure of the three factors that together explained 66.35% of the total variance. The Turkish Ox-PAQ was correlated with the other comparison measures used in this study.

Conclusion

The Turkish Ox-PAQ is a reliable and valid questionnaire to evaluate the participation and activity levels of older people (Clinical Trial Number: NCT04368754).