Successful Strategies and Critical Considerations Needed to Ensure Independence with Kids and their Powered Mobility Systems

Presenter(s)

Event Details

Topic:

mobility, mounting, seating & positioning

Format:

lecture

Subject Level:

intermediate

Age Span:

preschool
kindergarten - grade 6
grades 7-12
adult

Target Audience:

AT specialist

consultant

educator
family member / caregiver

occupational therapist
paraprofessional
physical therapist
special educator
speech language pathologist

Professional Development Credits

IACET CEUs:

.3 CEUs

ACVREP CEs:

2.5 CEs

Presentation Length: 2hrs 30mins

Location:

Plaza 4

Description:

Children are not small adults and consequently require completely different support for learning to manage their own powered chairs within familiar environments and unfamiliar environments than do adults. Children need to be supported in: 1). the development of their postural control through active seating, 2). the development and use of their sensory processing systems by developing kinesthetic awareness, and 3). the need to be supported in the development of their cognitive structures for the use of cognitive mapping. Children and their powered mobility systems must change as they grow and become more experienced. This affects the programming of the electronics of the chair, the seating of the chair, and even the access method and use of it within varied familiar and unfamiliar envrionments.

Learning Outcomes:

As a result of this activity, participants will be able to:

• Identify at least 2 spcific features of a wheelchair’s seating components which help support a child’s development and her/his use of active seating.

• Identify 3 parameters of the chair’s performance which must be programmed for initial use by a first-time assessment.

• Identify two components required to use the child’s powered chair’s alternative access to manage an AAC device.

Disclosures:

Lisa Rotelli is executive director of Adaptive Switch Labs, and is an exhibitor at the conference. She also represents products which work with powered mobility and AAC.