Manual Wheelchairs - World Health Organization

Building the capacity of local personnel to provide training
traInIng I 101
To maintain training programmes locally, it is important to develop the capacity of local trainers
(6); and in order to train effectively, practical experience in the field is necessary. Some strategies
for developing local trainers include the following.
• When setting up a training programme, select strong candidates with the potential to become
trainers. Train these people in basic wheelchair provision and, after field practice, in more
advanced wheelchair provision. After two or three years, these personnel should have the
potential to train others in basic wheelchair provision. To assist them in this role, training in “how
to deliver training” would be of benefit.
• Ensure local trainers continue to practise their skills in the field. This will increase the quality of
the training they are able to deliver.
In the absence of local trainers, there are international organizations that may assist in providing
training (see Annex A). An example of such training is given in Box 4.3.
Box 4.3. “Fit for Life” wheelchair prescription training package
Motivation has developed a training course aimed at wheelchair
service personnel working in less-resourced settings. To enable it to
be delivered consistently by different trainers, the course has been
documented and “packaged”. The training package includes a student
workbook, a trainer’s guide and teaching aids such as poster-size
visual aids, assessment methods and card games.
Fictitious characters are used throughout the course to provide a range
of different case study scenarios to reinforce the trainees’ learning.
In the first version of the package, illustrations have been designed
to represent a range of Asian nationalities and religions, allowing
the course to be used in a wide range of settings in Asia. For settings
outside this region, it would be appropriate to adapt the illustrations.
The trainer’s guide contains overall information on how to deliver
the course, as well as lesson plans for each session. each lesson plan
includes the time and materials required for that session and step-bystep
instructions on how to teach the session.
The development of the course took two years. The training package enables different trainers to deliver the course,
and provides a consistent level of training and student assessment. The training package has also been used by other
organizations, made possible by the development of the trainer’s guide and teaching aids.
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