Assistive Technology and specific care in the granting of wheelchairs in Rio Grande do Norte state

• Main Authors: Cláudia Regina Cabral Galvão, Bárbara Iansã de Lima Barroso, Daniela de Castro Grutt
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade Federal de São Carlos 2013-04-01
• Series: Cadernos de Terapia Ocupacional
• Subjects: Assistive Technology; Health Policy; Occupational Therapy; Unified Health System; Wheelchair.
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.4322/cto.2013.003

The Orthesis and Prosthesis Grant Program from Rio Grande do Norte State was restructured by a team of occupational and physical therapists specialized in Assistive Technology. The sector has a showroom for the equipment, prepares prescriptions, and makes deliveries after individual assessment made by the team. The work is developed in conjunction with orthopedic workshop technicians to adjust and adapt the wheelchairs when necessary. Social workers guide and follow the bureaucratic processes of documentation and purchasing, which allows the handing in of wheelchairs throughout the year. This program is considered distinctive compared to programs from other states. In this work, a study was conducted to characterize the demand for locomotion assistance devices, such as wheelchairs, and describe the delivery and acquisition process of the Orthesis and Prosthesis Grant Program from Rio Grande do Norte State. The study was carried out after analyzing and correlating information on the wheelchair delivery process in the past three years. A discussion on the organizational structure, operation, and acquisition facilities of this program is presented in order to promote the social inclusion of people with special needs.