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Background: Wheelchairs allow users to realise basic human rights and improved quality of life. South African and international documents guide rehabilitation service delivery and thus the provision of wheelchairs. Evidence indicates that rehabilitation policy implementation gaps exist in rural South Africa.

Objectives: The aim of this article was to explore the extent to which wheelchair service delivery in a rural, remote area of South Africa was aligned with the South African National Guidelines on Provision of Assistive Devices, The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and The World Health Organization Guidelines on Provision of Wheelchairs in Less-Resourced Settings.

Method: Qualitative methods were used. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 22 participants who were identified through purposive sampling. Content analysis of data was preformed around the construct of wheelchair service delivery.

Results: Study findings identified gaps between the guiding documents and wheelchair service delivery. Areas where gaps were identified included service aspects such as referral, assessment, prescription, user and provider training, follow up, maintenance and repair as well as management aspects such as staff support, budget and monitoring. Positive findings related to individual assessments, enthusiastic and caring staff and the provision of wheelchairs at no cost.

Conclusion: The gaps in policy implementation can have a negative impact on users and the service provider. Inappropriate or no wheelchairs limit user function, participation and quality of life. In addition, an inappropriate wheelchair will have a shorter lifespan, requiring frequent repairs and replacements with cost implications for the service provider.

Purpose:

The aim of this study was to explore the psychosocial impact of standing devices as experienced by users. 

Method:

This is the second part of a comprehensive survey in five counties in Sweden where all the subjects with standing devices were invited to participate. The impact of standing devices on functional independence, quality of life and wellbeing was assessed using a questionnaire, Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Devices Scale (PIADS).

Results:

The psychosocial impact of the standing devices was perceived as positive. The highest PIADS scores in relation to age were found in the oldest group, aged 65 years and older. The ability to walk and independence in ambulation resulted in higher scores than the use of a wheelchair and/or dependence on others. Those who stood often awarded higher scores in the PIADS questionnaire compared to those who used the device less frequently. When standing was integrated in various activities, its psychosocial impact received high scores. 

Conclusion:

The psychosocial impact of standing devices was generally experienced positively. The main results indicated that standing in a standing device had a value and we as professionals should ask the users about the intended purpose of their standing in order to prescribe the optimal device.

When attempting to understand the construct of intellectual disability in different contexts, speaking to family members in addition to the individual with the disability may provide new insight about understandings of and responses to intellectual disability in society and may help to identify the forms of support that are available or needed to ensure the quality of life of people with disabilities. This article outlines and discusses interviews that were conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, with family members of children and adults with intellectual disabilities. These interviews explore how families came to understand that their child had an intellectual disability; the availability of family support; and family hopes and dreams for the future, and were a part of a wider exploratory study that gathered insight from individuals with disabilities, families, and other providers of support to explore understandings and perceptions of disability in Dar es Salaam. Understanding family experiences will help researchers, policy makers, non-governmental organisations, and others to identify family strengths and family support needs which can ultimately improve family quality of life and the quality of life of the member with a disability.

Background: Cerebral palsy is a type of non-progressive central nervous system disorder with multiple impairments. As there are sensory, communicatory and intellectual impairments, providing care at home may be stressful and affect to the physical and mental health of the caregivers. This in turn could interfere with rehabilitation of persons with cerebral palsy.

Purpose: This study assesses the mental health status and quality of life of caregivers of persons with disabilities. The study group consisted of caregivers of 23 children with cerebral palsy and intellectual disability.

Method: The needs of the children with disabilities were assessed using a pre- tested interview schedule, while caregivers were administered GHQ-28 and WHO-QOL.

Results: Thirteen (56.52%) of the primary caregivers tested positive for GHQ. The psychological and environmental domains of QOL were found to be most affected, while the physical and social domains were relatively better.

Conclusion: There was a significant (p<0.05) correlation between the GHQ scores and quality of life.

In Nepal, many people live with leprosy-related disabilities. The objective of this stdy was to evalate dierences in socio-economic characteristics, ality of life , perceived stima, activity and participation amon people aected by leprosy as a group and between this group and the general population, and to identify prime determinants of among the leprosy-aected people.

People with leprosy-related disabilities (N=100; 54DGI/46DGII) and community controls (N=100) were selected from Morang district, South-East Nepal, using uota sampling. , perceived stigma and participation and activity limitations were measured using the Nepali abbreviated version of the World Health Organisation Quality of Life (WHOQOL) assessment and the Nepali versions of the Jacoby Scale, Participation Scale and Green Pastures Activity Scale (GPAS), respectively.

Total QOL, participation and activity levels of people aected by leprosy were worse than those of the general population. Regression analysis showed that the ability to maintain a family, satisfaction with health, vocational training, se, activity and participation limitations (the laer for QOL only), perceived stigma and living situation (i.e. joint family, type of house) were signicantly associated with a deterioration in QOL and higher participation restriction in one or both of the grading groups.

There is an urgent need for interventions focused on uic referral of people with leprosy, to minimize the development of visible impairments, and social rehabilitation. The laer can be achieved by creating more public awareness, providing (nancial) support for income generating projects and /or vocational training to leprosy- aected people, and by encouraging them to be involved in all community development activities. The current results indicate that such measures would help improve the uality of life of people with leprosy-related disabilities.

“As there are many tools available for evaluating impact in the international literature, CBM commissioned this review in order to obtain clear guidance on how research can be carried across their programmes in order to generate high quality and reliable evidence on the impact of their programmes in the lives of people with disabilities and their families”