Wheelchair services in England 'are failing'

[maureenho]

Wheelchair services in England 'are failing'
By Nikki Fox Disability correspondent

One of Great Britain's most successful Paralympians has said wheelchair services across England are failing on every level.

Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson has launched a new national charter to improve services across the country.

Some people wait years for the right wheelchair and an ill-fitting chair can cause hip dislocations, pressure sores and make disabilities worse.

NHS England said the whole system needed to change.

There are about 1.2 million wheelchair users across the UK, but NHS England said the figures were old and work needed to be done collecting data locally to get a detailed picture of what was happening across the country.

Baroness Grey-Thompson, who launched the Right Chair Right Time Right Now campaign, said the standard of wheelchair services differed greatly depending on where a person lived.

She gave examples of some people waiting three months for a suitable chair and some waiting seven years under a different NHS trust.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33595627

[annie]

tha22222 go90

[Honey]

tha22222 go90
Some charity shops occasionally have them donated and sell them at very reasonable prices should one need a wheelchair urgently/ temporarily, and e bay is worth a look too.

[chenrezig]

It can be worth contacting your local Red Cross as they have equipment you can hire.

When dear Dad needed a wheelchair we had one on free loan from the Red Cross, the GP wrote them a letter and we got one free til the one that had been ordered for him arrived

Mobility aids
We provide short-term loans of wheelchairs and other equipment at almost 1,000 outlets in the UK.
The types of mobility aids we provide include:
Wheelchairs
Backrests
Bath seats
Walking sticks and frames
Commodes
Bedpans
Urinals

http://www.redcross.org.uk/Where-we-wor ... 52cme&ds=y