By Rick Wyche, Vice President Business Development, ATF Medical
Having a spinal cord injury from a catastrophic accident at work is an indescribable change in someone’s life. The resulting change in lifestyle and quality can be overwhelming for many injured workers.
Many people view this type of accident as something from which they’ll never recover. This may have been true many years ago, but now different technologies allow many injured workers that use wheelchairs to become fully or nearly fully independent.
While the initial focus of any recovery is to return the injured worker home to their family, once they are home and functional the question is often, what’s next? With advances in assistive technology and general technological advances around the world, it is easier to have an injured worker in return to work in a wheelchair and function at a high level.
The first piece of technology to think about is a power assist device for an injured worker in a manual wheelchair. There are several types of power assist devices, but the overall purpose is to assist the person in propelling their wheelchair, particularly in long distance situations.
An injured worker we treated (we will call Mike) was a surveyor. Prior to the accident, his job required lots of walking through the city to perform his duties. The accident left Mike with a spinal cord injury requiring the use of a manual wheelchair. Mike really wanted to go back to work but was unable to propel his manual chair long enough to perform his previous duties without causing shoulder pain. Adding a power assist to the manual wheelchair allowed him to perform at the same level he did before the injury.
Powerchairs have many different options that can enable injured workers to return to work. They can be fitted with Bluetooth technology to control a computer mouse and other Bluetooth-enabled devices. A power elevating seat allows the injured worker to raise the seat upward up to 14 inches. This way the injured worker can talk eye to eye with their peers and reach shelving units and counter tops that they could not access from a standard seated position.
The most useful feature that a powerchair can provide is allowing the injured worker to stand. While in a standing position an individual can drive the wheelchair as well. This technology can allow the person to reach their normal height so they can get into high drawers, cabinets, and countertops.
To illustrate this, let’s look at a case involving a deputy sheriff (Tom) who was injured in a motor vehicle accident. He returned to duty in a desk-level capacity, using a manual wheelchair. The county hired an assistant for Tom because he could not reach files and some other things he needed. This worked for 16 years, and eventually the deputy developed shoulder issues from constantly propelling the wheelchair. A standing powerchair was suggested and fitted for Tom.
Upon receiving the chair Tom and the department realized that he could now perform all the duties his assistant was doing as he was now able to reach all the files, phones, and greet the citizens that came to the station. From an emotional and mental standpoint, this really allowed Tom to shine even more in his post-injury role. The department was able to reassign his assistant to another area of need instead of bringing on new personnel, thus saving the cost of recruiting, hiring and training a new employee.
The emergence of teleworking has also increased the ability of injured workers to return to work in a wheelchair. A key challenge for wheelchair users is transportation. Wheelchair-modified vans are very expensive and can take a long time to repair when they break. There are public transit options available, but they are often cited as slow and unreliable. Thirty years ago, technology enabled video calls were unimaginable, at least at the scale we see today. Injured workers may need to be trained in other areas of the organization, but by being able to work from home, they can return to work.
There are many old cliches about work and why do it if you don’t have to, especially after a catastrophic event such as a spinal cord injury, but in reality, many people gain self-esteem and confidence from their work. A positive work environment can help people build relationships with their peers, develop skills for career growth, and foster an increase in self-esteem.
A spinal cord injury from a work-related accident is life altering, it does not have to be a life stop. Advances in technology have made it easier for injured workers to return to a quality life comparable to before they were injured and have allowed many to return to work to become productive members of society.
About Rick Wyche, ATP, C.E.A.C.
As Vice President of Business Development, Rick Wyche leads account management efforts for ATF Medical.
He joined the company as an intern in 2008 and immersed himself in the industry in ways that give him in-depth, practical experience and understanding of catastrophic equipment solutions in workers’ compensation. Rick holds the Assisted Technology Professional (ATP) and Certified Environmental Access Consultant (C.E.A.C.) credentials and helps injured workers learn how to use their mobility and catastrophic care equipment in addition to managing account management efforts
He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.
About ATF Medical
ATF Medical (After the Fall, Inc.) the premiere workers’ comp complex equipment and adaptive housing provider, supplies fully integrated mobility and accessibility solutions for workers’ compensation payers and injured workers nationally. The company specializes in complex cases and coordinates all rehabilitation and accessibility needs, including home modifications and vehicle modifications. Based in Newnan, Georgia, ATF Medical can be reached via www.atfmedical.com or by calling 877-880-4283.