Out-Front :: Accredited CEU Course on Wheelchair Propulsion.

Fully Accredited On-Line CEU Course Entitled:

Saving It for Later!

Upper Limb Preservation in Manual Wheelchair Users

To read a therapist's review of the course, please click here.

To go directly to the Course Registration Page, please click here.

Course Highlights:

Six hour, fully accredited on-line course provides an in-depth review of the clinical guidelines, “Preservation of Upper Limb Function Following Spinal Cord Injury: A Clinical Practice Guideline for Healthcare Professionals.”
Emphasis placed on the practical implementation of the guidelines to foster an enhanced standard of care for all people who use manual wheelchairs.
From low tech to high tech (e.g., from tape measures and stopwatches to the SmartWheel), learn about objective measurement techniques for propulsion training, wheelchair comparison, and equipment configuration.
6 Contact Hours of Continuing Education (the equivalent of .6 units)**
The development of this course was made possible by a grant from the PVA Education Foundation. See below to learn more.
$115.00 Registration Fee (For 5 or more registrants from one site, discounts may be offered. Please call 480-833-1834)

Course Presenters:

Kendra Betz, MSPT, ATP
Ron Boninger, BSME, MBA

**The University of Pittsburgh is certifying the educational contact hours of this program and by doing so is in no way endorsing any specific content, company, or product. The information presented in this program may represent only a sample of appropriate interventions.

Therapist's Review of the Course

"I have completed the modules and think this course is fantastic. I will contact therapists that I know in the Boston area and encourage them to take it. Honestly, I think this should be a required seminar for therapists working in a facility that has a seating clinic or therapist that services individuals that use a wheelchair as a seating and mobility device. I'll also recommend it to the equipment company that I use because it should be a required seminar for the RTSs and rehab technicians!"

"There are so many helpful hints shared in this seminar, which is what sets it apart from a strictly technical approach. I liked the analogy of a wheelchair as an orthotic device. Thinking of wheelchair propulsion in the same manner as gait analysis also makes sense. I am so thankful that I have this information now and have started to make changes that are critical for the wheelchair user. I can't thank you enough for this opportunity! My students that use wheelchairs thank you also!"
Deborah Webster, PT, MEd
Boston, MA

Funding for Course Development: PVA Education Foundation Grant

In May, 2006, Three Rivers was awarded a two-year grant from the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) Education Foundation. The grant (PVA Grant #564) was entitled, "Preserving Upper Limb Function: Teaching the Clinical Practice Guidelines."

Background and Summary of Grant Objectives

Because of the repetitive stress of daily wheelchair propulsion and transfers, there was a critical need to explore ways to prevent or delay upper limb pain and injury among people with spinal cord injury or disease (SCI/D) who use manual wheelchairs. In response to this need, the Consortium of Spinal Cord Medicine published a new set of clinical guidelines (“Preservation of Upper Limb Function Following Spinal Cord Injury: A Clinical Practice Guideline for Healthcare Professionals.”) that specify methods for the prevention and/or treatment of upper limb pain and injury. The successful implementation of the guidelines requires effective education of SCI/D healthcare providers. This was the central focus of this grant, which included on-site education and training sessions with front-line clinical staff in the VA system of SCI/D regional centers and in leading rehabilitation clinics nationwide. The goal of the program was and remains the creation of a concrete, actionable feeling of empowerment among clinicians that will enable them to create an enhanced standard of care for their SCI/D clients driven by their understanding of the SCI Clinical Practice Guidelines and their implementation. This on-line course was the direct outcome of this grant-funded project.

For more details on how the course works, please go to the Course Registration Page.