Autonomy and Housing Accessibility Among Powered Mobility Device Users

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Science
• Environmental Psychology
• Disability Studies

Background:

• Powered mobility device (PMD) use is essential for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) to maintain independence.
• Environmental barriers and accessibility challenges significantly influence the autonomy of PMD users.
• Understanding the interplay between personal factors and the environment is key to optimizing PMD functionality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize environmental barriers and accessibility issues faced by PMD users.
• To assess the autonomy of PMD users in indoor and outdoor settings.
• To identify specific home environmental barriers contributing to accessibility problems and their association with user autonomy.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study involving 48 PMD users with SCI.
• Utilized the Impact of Participation and Autonomy and Housing Enabler instruments.
• Employed descriptive statistics and logistic regression for data analysis.

Main Results:

• Increased duration of living with SCI correlated with less indoor autonomy restriction.
• Greater functional limitations and entrance door accessibility problems predicted increased outdoor autonomy restriction.
• Specific environmental factors were identified as significant predictors of autonomy.

Conclusions:

• Optimizing PMD use requires a focus on the relationship between client autonomy and housing accessibility.
• Practitioners should consider environmental modifications to enhance independence for PMD users.
• Addressing accessibility barriers is critical for improving the quality of life for individuals with SCI.