Date: Friday, March 21, 2014
Category: Conference News

CanWheel, a Candian-government funded project to improve wheeled mobility in older adults, will host an open session for conference attendees and the community-at-large during the RESNA pre-conference session on Thursday, June 12 from 1:30 to 4:30pm. 

During this pre-conference session, the CanWheel team will introduce themselves, provide an overview of each project, and describe their interdisciplinary approach to enhance the health, functioning and quality of life of older adult power wheelchair (PWC) users.  

About CanWheel

Power wheelchairs (PWCs) are a form of assistive technology that can compensate for impaired mobility and improve quality of life for older adults. These devices can have a positive impact on the quality of life of older adults, including improved well-being and self-esteem, reduced pain and discomfort, and enhanced activity performance, participation and independence. Despite these benefits, PWCs are far from perfect in terms of their functionality, safety, and cost-effectiveness – which make them among the most frequently abandoned devices by their users.  If the hope is to reduce wheelchair abandonment issues and aid older adults in accessing the benefits of their devices, it is important to understand how PWCs can better meet users’ needs and skill levels. It was for these reasons that the CanWheel research team was formed.

The CanWheel team is comprised of over 15 clinical researchers and scientists across Canada with expertise in assistive technology, mobility and impairment. In 2009, the team was awarded a Canadian Institute of Health Research Emerging Team grant (AMG-109025), led by Dr. William Miller, PhD, FCAOT,  Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of British Columbia and Co-Director of the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute Rehabilitation Research Program at GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre. The CanWheel team consists of computer scientists, engineers, epidemiologists, gerontologists, occupational therapists, rehabilitation-medicine physicians and sociologists who share the common mission of improving the wheeled mobility of older adults.

The overall purpose of CanWheel is to improve the mobility opportunities of older adults who use PWCs by addressing three basic questions: 1) How are PWCs used now? 2) How can PWCs be used better?, and 3) How can PWCs be better?  To answer these questions, the CanWheel team has developed a program of research that uses a mixed-methods approach, including lab-based, qualitative and quantitative methodologies, spanning five key research projects. The five research projects have been designed specifically to: 1) evaluate the needs and experiences of older adults using PWCs;  2) describe the trajectory of mobility status in older PWC users with a toolkit of subjective and objective measures; 3) develop and assess innovations (e.g. collaborative PWC) to maintain and restore wheeled mobility; 4) monitor the activity level of the PWC users; and, 5) evaluate the Wheelchair Skills Training Program for PWC users.

THE CANWHEEL TEAM 

Nominated Principal Investigator:

• William C Miller, PhD, FCAOT, University of British Columbia

Principal Investigators: 

• Louise Demers, PhD, Universite de Montreal
• Alan Mackworth, PhD, University of British Columbia
• R. Lee Kirby, MD, FRCPC, Dalhousie
• Alex Mihailidis, PhD, PEng, University of Toronto
• Laura Hurd Clarke, PhD, University of British Columbia
• Jim Little, DPhil, University of British Columbia
• Ian Mitchell, PhD, University of British Columbia
• Jan Miller Polgar, PhD, Western
• Francois Routhier, PhD, CIRRIS
• Bonita Sawatzky, PhD, University of British Columbia
• Cher Smith, PhD, OT, Dalhousie
• Joelle Pineau, PhD, McGill University
• Gary Birch, OC, PhD, PEng, Neil Squire Society

Investigators:

• Claudine Auger, PhD, Universite de Montreal
• Laura Titus, PhD, Western
• Ben Mortenson, PhD, OT, University of British Columbia
• Paula Rushton, PhD, OT, Universite de Montreal

For more information about CanWheel, visit the CanWheel website. 

For more information about RESNA 2014, which is June 11-15 in Indianapolis, IN, please click here.