Children ‘squashed in wrong size wheelchairs’

Many children are being squashed into wheelchairs that are too small for them which has serious consequences for their limb development, a study on wheelchair provision has found.

The study, carried out in partnership with SeatTech, Enable Ireland and the University of Limerick, also found that children are being put at risk of pressure ulcers and chest infections, and it warns that a failure to provide trained people to fix wheelchairs could have lethal consequences.

The study has highlighted a worrying lack of any national policies or guidelines in support of the 40,000 people who use wheelchairs and seating assistive technology in Ireland.