Seating And Positioning, Wheelchair Mobility CEU Courses for OTs

Pediatric power wheelchair assessment, including determining and developing cognitive and motor readiness, team evaluation, and mobility training as a part of the school day, will be comprehensively addressed in this course. Assessment, skill development, and skill training are critical to achieve functional and independent use of power mobility.

Transportation options for individuals with disabilities have expanded tremendously, giving families many more options to safely, easily, and quickly move between locations. This presentation will give an introduction to what adapted car seats and strollers are, how to evaluate them, tips for selecting the optimal products for your clients, and funding options.

Wheelchair seating systems often include secondary supports including pelvic belts, anterior trunk supports, and ankle straps. This course will explore secondary supports and appropriate clinical applications, as well as what to do when secondary supports are required, and team members have restraint concerns. Case studies will be included.

The session begins with an overview of cortical visual impairment (CVI), including the characteristics and in-depth description of the phases of CVI. Strategies for creating an effective environment and considerations to keep in mind while conducting wheelchair evaluation and developing manual and power mobility skills for independence are discussed.

This course presents the current knowledge on innovative approaches to wheelchair skills training for children and adolescents. A renowned program that has been used internationally with adults and recently evaluated in pediatrics is also described.

An access method is used by the client to control assistive technology devices, such as power wheelchairs and speech generating devices. Single or multiple switches can be used for access, though careful switch assessment is required to determine optimal switch placement and switch type to meet an individual’s needs.

Pediatric seating and mobility equipment are not simply smaller than equipment designed for adults. This course will present the importance of pediatric positioning, clinical considerations, how to determine if a child is positioned adequately, as well as alternative positioning. A detailed case study will pull all the information together in a practical way.

Therapists are often key members of the wheelchair seating evaluation team. Seating assessment includes evaluation of current posture and equipment, a mat examination, and equipment recommendations. This course will review the assessment process.

Wheelchair seating encompasses evaluation, postural management, pressure mitigation, and facilitating function. Seating strategies change, however, when applied to specific client populations. This course will address considerations when working with pediatric, geriatric, bariatric, and degenerative populations.

Occupational and physical therapists are often key members of the wheelchair seating evaluation team. Seating interventions, including pressure management, seated angles, and strategies to address common positioning challenges will be addressed in this course.