ABSTRACT
Centuries ago, people with disabilities who survived for an extended period of time were transported on hammocks slung between poles which were carried by others. This was the preferred means of transportation of the upper class and thus carried no stigma. Later the wheelbarrow was developed and soon became a common mode of transportation for people with disabilities. Because wheelbarrows were used to transport materials, during this period in history, people with disabilities were looked upon as outcasts from society. During the renaissance, the French court popularized the first wheelchairs. Wheelchairs were overstuffed arm chairs with wheels placed upon them. This enabled movement, with assistance, indoors. Later the wooden wheelchair with wicker matting was developed. This type of chair remained the standard until the 1930s. Franklin D. Roosevelt was not satisfied with the wooden wheelchair and had many common metal kitchen chairs modified with wheels. In the 1930s a young mining engineer, named Everest experienced an accident that left him mobility impaired. He worked with a fellow engineer Jennings to
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develop steel wheelchairs. Within a few years, they formed a company Everest & Jennings to manufacture wheelchairs. Following World War II, medical advances saved the lives of many veterans with spinal cord injuries or lower limb amputations, who would have otherwise died. Veterans medical centers issued these veterans steel framed wheelchairs with 18 inch seat widths. These wheelchairs were designed to provide the veteran some mobility within the hospital and home, and not to optimize ergonomic variables. Just as among the ambulatory population, mobility among people with disabilities varies. Mobility is more of a functional limitation than a disability related condition. Powered mobility can have tremendous positive psycho-social effects on an individual. Power wheelchairs provide greater independence to thousands of people with severe mobility impairments.
