Wheeled Mobility: Augmented mobility, even for persons who can ambulate.

If ambulation is thought of as the only acceptable means of mobility, it is virtually certain that increasing functional limitation will result as ambulation becomes less and less capable. If, however, one can appreciate that functional mobility is about getting where you want when you want, then wheeled mobility, i.e. manual or power wheelchairs or scooters – individually or in combination – may offer a truly functional solution.

Manual Mobility: Self-propulsion, with or without wheelies

In the disability community, there is a community held, half-humorous hierarchy of “gimpdom” (their terminology) among persons who rely on wheelchairs for their mobility. At the pinnacle are manual wheelchair riders who can do a wheelie (maintain balance on the two rear wheels). At the bottom of the pyramid are the lowly power chair users. Between the enviable champions and the basement-dwelling power chair users are persons who can self-propel a manual chair, although without the glamour of wheelies. Those folks often voice an appreciation for not being in the bottom caste (“Thank God I don’t need a power chair”).

This community hierarchy is a reflection of the relative levels of functional independence possible when using different types of wheeled mobility devices.

It takes strength and co-ordination to “ride around in a wheelie”. In return for the effort, the rider can achieve maximum maneuverability among persons relying on a chair for mobility assistance. In clinical services, fitting a chair and training a person to be able to do a wheelie is as important as gait training for an ambulatory client. When getting around in a chair, very often two wheels are better than four -- in somewhat the same way that ambulating on two legs is better than having to crawl around on all fours.