Objective

The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with variability in satisfaction with functional mobility (as measured by the Functional Mobility Assessment [FMA]) in users of mobility devices. Our primary hypothesis was that device type and Assistive Technology Professional (ATP) involvement will be the most significant predictors of FMA score. Our secondary hypothesis was that ATP involvement is associated with use of more custom-fitted manual wheelchairs and group 3 and 4 power wheelchairs.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

Data were collected from equipment suppliers who collaborate with clinicians to administer the FMA and associated Uniform Data Set within various settings (ie, rehabilitation clinic, school, supplier place of business).

Participants

A data set of 4743 cases was included in the analysis (N=4743).

Interventions

Not applicable.

Main Outcome Measures

FMA questionnaire collected at baseline, client age, gender, primary diagnosis, years since disability onset, device type, device age, living situation, ATP involvement, and geographic area.

Results

Ordinal logistic regression modeling showed that geographic area, device type, ATP involvement, primary diagnosis, gender, age, device age, and years since onset of disability significantly predicted the variance in FMA scores at P<.05. Device type was the most significant predictor of variance in FMA score. Involvement of an ATP had a significant effect on the type of device that participants used (χ²²⁰=1739.18, P<.001; odds ratio, 0.589; 95% confidence interval, 0.49-0.708). If an ATP was involved, there were significantly higher proportions (all P<.05) of individuals using custom-fitted manual wheelchair and high-end groups 3 and 4 power wheelchairs prescribed compared with when no ATP was involved or when involvement was uncertain.

Conclusions

The relationship between ATP involvement and functional outcome supports the concept that ATP certification recognizes demonstrated competence in analyzing the needs of consumers with disabilities and selection of appropriate mobility assistive equipment with improved functional outcomes.

中文翻译：

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辅助技术专业人员对提供行动辅助设备的影响

客观的

本研究的目的是检查与移动设备用户对功能移动性（由功能移动性评估 [FMA] 衡量）的满意度可变性相关的因素。我们的主要假设是设备类型和辅助技术专业人员 (ATP) 的参与将是 FMA 分数的最重要预测因素。我们的次要假设是 ATP 参与与使用更多定制手动轮椅以及第 3 组和第 4 组电动轮椅有关。

设计

回顾性队列研究。

环境

数据是从设备供应商那里收集的，这些供应商与临床医生合作在各种环境（即康复诊所、学校、供应商营业场所）内管理 FMA 和相关的统一数据集。

参与者

分析中包括了 4743 个病例的数据集 (N=4743)。

干预措施

不适用。

主要观察指标

在基线、客户年龄、性别、初步诊断、残疾发生后的年数、设备类型、设备年龄、生活状况、ATP 参与和地理区域收集的 FMA 问卷。

结果

序数逻辑回归模型显示地理区域、设备类型、ATP 参与、初步诊断、性别、年龄、设备年龄和自残疾开始的年数显着预测 FMA 评分的方差，P <.05。设备类型是 FMA 得分差异的最重要预测因素。的ATP的介入有显著作用在设备上的类型中使用的参与者（χ ²²⁰ = 1739.18，P <0.001;比值比，0.589; 95％置信区间，0.49-0.708）。如果涉及 ATP，则比例明显更高（所有P<.05) 使用定制手动轮椅和高端组 3 和 4 电动轮椅的个人与不涉及 ATP 或参与不确定时相比。

结论

ATP 参与和功能结果之间的关系支持这样一个概念，即 ATP 认证承认在分析残疾消费者的需求和选择具有改进功能结果的适当移动辅助设备方面的能力。