As alluded to on the "Wheelchair Terminology" page, there are a number of different types of wheelchairs in existence. The intent of this page and the following five pages is to present an "overview" of the differing wheelchair types.

ACCOMODATING A SPECTRUM OF WHEELCHAIR USERS

In 1983, the United States Commission On Civil Rights released a publication entitled "Accomodating The Spectrum Of Individual Abilities". This title is very fitting for the publication's discussion of the various aspects of providing opportunities for people with disabilities to participate fully as equal citizens in society -- commenting with respect to accomodations in the fields of employment, education, independent living, and so on. The title also very fittingly reflects the fact that there are a wide variety of people with disabilities whose individual circumstances are often as varied as the individuals themselves.

A key to understanding the roles that the different types of wheelchairs play in accomodating the needs of their users lies in understanding the needs of the specific users each wheelchair type is designed to accomodate. Although these needs constitute a spectrum of needs as alluded to in the previous paragraph, the major needs of individuals as they relate to the use of wheelchairs does fall into several groups. We will consider first those who use wheelchairs on a temporary basis and then those who use wheelchairs on a more "permanent" basis:

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Copyright (c.) 2007-Present -- Michael and Brenda Swanson