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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

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