Necessity to Develop a Tool to Evaluate Activity of Daily Living for Electric Powered Indoor/Outdoor Chair Users

• Published in: Annals of rehabilitation medicine Vol. 39; no. 2; pp. 277 - 284
• Main Authors: Lee, Jiwon, Lim, Jae Kuk, Lee, Min Jun, Jo, Yoon-Sik, Park, Jae Sung, Kim, Jong Moon, Kim, Shin Kyoung
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Korean Academy of Rehabilitation Medicine 01.04.2015; 대한재활의학회
• Subjects: Original; 재활의학; Self-help devices; Activities of daily living; Wheelchairs; Disability evaluation
• ISSN: 2234-0645; 2234-0653
• DOI: 10.5535/arm.2015.39.2.277

To evaluate changes in activity of daily living before and after provision of electric-powered indoor/outdoor chair (EPIOC), discuss problems of current activities of daily living (ADL) evaluating tools for EPIOC users, and provide preliminary data to develop ADL evaluation tool for EPIOC user. A total of 70 users who were prescribed EPIOC and had been using for more than 1 year were recruited in this study. Before and after provision of EPIOC, MBI and FIM scores were measured and a questionnaire consisting of six categories (general socioeconomic states, currently using state, whether EPIOC was helpful for social participation and occupational chances, psychiatric influences, self-reported degrees of independency, and barriers of using EPIOC) was used. No difference in MBI scores before and after provision of EPIOC was observed. However, the wheelchair ambulation category showed a significant difference. While motor FIM was not significantly different from MBI, FIM score were significantly (p<0.05) higher than MBI. For questions regarding social participation frequency, helpfulness of EPIOC on confidence, refreshing patients' emotions and self-reported degrees of independence, all of them showed positive responses. Especially, EPIOC users' self-reported degree of independency showed favorable results. There was discrepancy in MBI or FIM measured by physicians. Our study showed that there was a gap between the existing ADL evaluation tool and the ADL level that EPIOC users were actually feeling. Thus, it is necessary to develop an evaluation tool specifically for EPIOC.