Power Mobility – Increased mobility range, may have decreased access.

Scooters (known to Medicare as POVs, Power Operated Vehicles) Scooters provide power mobility (i.e. mobility in which the rider is not required to expender her/his own energy), but have the distinct advantage of “not looking like a wheelchair.” For many people who have experienced difficulty with walking, a scooter is a great benefit to “restore” mobility. Scooters are most often 3-wheeled devices (4-wheeled scooters are also available), equipped with a tiller for steering and a seat mounted on a platform, the latter serving as a footrest. Scooters also have the advantage of being easier to transport than full-blown power chairs. If your client has even a limited ability walk, s/he may be able to place a scooter, with the tiller folded down, into the trunk of car using a powered lift, and then walk, using the side of the car for external support, to the car door for entry. For children who are walking only limited distances, a scooter can provide a visually “cool” alternative for covering longer distances, to the cafeteria or the schoolyard, for example.

Functionally the longer wheelbase (distance from the front wheel(s) to the back) of a scooter requires a longer turning radius compared to a traditional wheelchair. However, most scooters come with a swivel seat, allowing the rider to make transfers from sitting to standing position to the side of the scooter. This, in turn, can reduce the maneuvering required to position the scooter for access at a destination, e.g. a counter top or dining table.

On more irregular outdoor terrain, the scooter is not as stable (resistant to tipping) as a power chair. This is true because it is narrower, making a lateral tip more likely, The lateral instability is aggravated when turning the scooter, a condition that worsens as speed increases. A scooter user, like all wheeled mobility users should be given driver training to understand the dynamic stability characteristics of the vehicle. For example, drivers should be taught to slow down when turning and to lean their trunk uphill when traveling across a hill (traveling across a side slope). Drivers need to be taught to exercise good judgment and slow down when traveling on unfamiliar ground.

An important consideration when considering a scooter is the stability of is the client’s medical condition. Unlike many power chairs which can be adjusted and re-configured with changes in a person’s physical status, scooters are not nearly as adaptable. The person will need to be able to use the tiller to steer (you cannot change the control interface), which will require bilateral shoulder extension and positioning the hands on the drive tiller while operating. If the client’s sitting balance is likely to change, be aware that changing seating options is much more limited for a scooter than a power chair.