Cooper Rory A, Cooper Rosemarie, Boninger Michael L
Department of Rehabilitation Science & Technology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Assist Technol. 2008 Summer;20(2):61-72. doi: 10.1080/10400435.2008.10131933.
There is an overwhelming need for wheelchairs and the research and development required to make them safer, more effective, and widely available. The following areas are of particular importance: practitioner credentials, accreditation, device evaluation, device user training, patient education, clinical prescribing criteria, national contracts, and access to new technology. There are over 170 U.S. wheelchair manufacturers with a total reported income of $1.33 billion. However, of these companies, only five had sales in excess of $100 million. Wheelchairs account for about 1% of Medicare spending. Use of assistive technology is an increasingly common way of adapting to a disability. The emergence of advanced mobility devices shows promise for the contribution of engineering to the amelioration of mobility impairments for millions of people who have disabilities or who are elderly. Some of the trends in wheelchairs are going to require new service delivery mechanisms, changes to public policy, and certainly greater coordination between consumers, policy makers, manufacturers, researchers, and service providers.
对轮椅以及使其更安全、更有效并广泛可用所需的研发存在着巨大需求。以下领域尤为重要：从业者资质、认证、设备评估、设备用户培训、患者教育、临床处方标准、国家合同以及新技术获取。美国有170多家轮椅制造商，报告的总收入为13.3亿美元。然而，在这些公司中，只有五家销售额超过1亿美元。轮椅约占医疗保险支出的1%。使用辅助技术是适应残疾的一种日益常见的方式。先进移动设备的出现有望为工程学助力改善数百万残疾或老年人士的行动障碍做出贡献。轮椅的一些发展趋势将需要新的服务提供机制、公共政策的改变，当然还需要消费者、政策制定者、制造商、研究人员和服务提供者之间进行更大程度的协调。
