Manual Wheelchairs - World Health Organization
Manual Wheelchairs - World Health Organization
Manual Wheelchairs - World Health Organization
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112 I guIdelInes on the provIsIon of manual wheelchaIrs In less resourced settIngs<br />
Box 5.1.<br />
<strong>Wheelchairs</strong> changing lives …<br />
Testimonial from a user in the Philippines<br />
Michelle lives on the rural<br />
island of Masbate, a<br />
remote area of the<br />
Philippines. She is 20<br />
years old, and was born<br />
without legs and with only<br />
one arm. Unable to propel<br />
a standard wheelchair,<br />
Michelle has lived without<br />
one for most of her life. For<br />
mobility she has had to “walk”<br />
with one arm and her torso.<br />
In 2005, Michelle was referred by<br />
community workers to a mobile<br />
wheelchair service operated by an<br />
international nongovernmental organization.<br />
The service team saw that for a wheelchair to be useful to Michelle, it would need to be<br />
operable by one arm, be suitable for rough surfaces, and be easily portable on public<br />
transport for travel into town. A local wheelchair factory that operates in partnership with<br />
the wheelchair service team was able to create a wheelchair to these specifications.<br />
Michelle is now able to propel herself in her wheelchair, and no longer has to move<br />
herself along at ground level. She uses the wheelchair to attend church, make social visits<br />
and play basketball. Most importantly, Michelle, who has a keen entrepreneurial spirit,<br />
aims to improve the economic well-being of her family. With improved mobility, her<br />
opportunities for this are greater.<br />
testimonial