Ageing and severe physical disability: patterns of change and implications for services

For the first time in history, numbers of people with severe physical disabilities such as spinal cord injury or polio are surviving to old age. Ageing-related changes combined with pre-existing impairments present new challenges for these individuals and for service providers. Implications for professionals include the need to foster more collaborative relationships between themselves and recipients, to emphasize services that enable independence, to coordinate new services, and to address issues of wellness, not only disability.