What is it about?

The rollercoaster adventures of parenting three kids, dealing with disability and mental health - and discussing disability discrimination and how to tackle it.

Thursday 5 June 2008

Girl on the Go

Boo Boo had a wonderful two days. You see, we've been trialling wheelchairs. Yesterday we tried the Quickie Zippie Z-Bop and the Pepe P17. Today we tried the Permobil Koala and K300. The first two were a back wheel drive and a mid wheel drive, while the Permobils are front wheel. Yeah, there is a whole lot of of technical stuff to consider...

It took Boo Boo about 5 minutes how to work out the joystick and drive the machine. And she had fun! It would be fair to say that the OT was amazed at the speed with which Boo Boo mastered the chair - and at both trials, it didn't take long for some other staff members from The Spastic Centre to come and have a look at this impressive little lady. She's very young to trial a chair, and despite the fact that the OT was the one who first suggested the idea, she was not expecting Boo Boo to be that confident that quickly.

All I can say is Boo Boo loved it. As she said "More K" (meaning "more car").

Thing is, seems we're incredibly lucky, and she might get more car very soon - maybe even tomorrow. Thing is, the OT has just had a pediatric Roller Rad brought in last week. She's changed the settings to fit Boo Boo, and if there is a portable ramp we can borrow to get the thing in the car, we can go and pick it up tomorrow - yes, tomorrow - and trial the chair for a few weeks. We will also be able to test-run the Koala and K300 for 5 days (or 7 days if we work around a weekend) and then get a better sense of which chair we decide to get. The OT has a slight preference for back-wheel drive, while we are with the technician and favour the new system of front wheel drive (which is a more intuitive way to drive, since the wheel is under your bottom, so you feel the control of the chair better). Anyway, time will tell, we're going to have fun trialling these wheels...

Here are some pictures of Boo Boo on the K300 and Koala. When she has her own chair, all the straps and settings will be right for her (there are some things on the chairs currently that she won't need), so no need to worry about the odd straps hanging down or the position of the footplates (which make her look like Terminator Toddler)...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

what a cute kid. the wheelchair with the drive wheels under the seat is prefered by many and there are usually a lot less broken walls with it. it is also easier to maneuver in tight spaces.