Author: oliviawilliams

  • NuDigest: The Importance of Sleep and Safety in Complex Rehabilitation

    An elderly woman in green pajamas stands beside an adjustable bed with quality bedding, holding a movable table. The modern, well-lit room features a potted plant, light gray curtains, and a small side table with a mug and lamp.

    Everyone has to sleep – sleep is a natural state of rest where the body is inactive, the mind unconscious, and the eyes are closed. However, for many people living with a wide variety of medical conditions and diagnoses, restful sleep can be elusive, leading to compounding health issues, and challenges for their caregivers. Nighttime…

  • NuDigest: International Seating Symposium

    The logo for the International Seating Symposium features the acronym ISS above a stylized icon in blue and yellow, alongside the words International Seating Symposium in bold blue text.

    ISS 2019 Pittsburgh: Bridging the Gap. I was privileged to be able to present twice at ISS this year, a definite personal best.

  • NuDigest: Spinal Cord Injury and Pregnancy

    A woman in a lab coat and glasses sits at a desk with a laptop, holding a tablet. Medical tools lie on the desk, and the blurred background suggests a modern Numotion office or lab setting.

    Having a spinal cord injury (SCI) does not affect a woman’s chance to naturally become pregnant, carry and deliver a healthy baby. However, complications can arise during and after, so preparation is key to a successful and healthy pregnancy.

  • NuDigest: Powered Mobility and Play

    Two girls in a candy store smile at each other. One stands holding a lollipop while the other, seated in a Complex Power Tilt Wheelchair, holds a colorful lollipop. Glass jars filled with sweets line the wooden shelves beside them.

    Play is an occupation in which every child has a fundamental right to engage. Hide-and-seek, tag, building forts and creating alternate universes with their imagination – play occupies the daily lives of children. The ability to explore the environment and engage in play is critical for the development of children. Yet, children with mobility impairments…

  • NuDigest: Addressing Parent’s Perception of Powered Mobility

    A young child with curly hair sits in a powered mobility device, smiling warmly in a bedroom with a white wardrobe and clothes hanging on hooks in the background—a moment highlighting NuDigest’s focus on parent perception.

    During my experience with Numotion, I have been able to observe conversations between the Assistive Technology Professional (ATPs), therapists, clients and parents/ caregivers. I feel like the most difficult conversations are sometimes the most rewarding. Bringing up the topic of powered mobility (PM) to parents can no doubt be an uncomfortable conversation, but it is…

  • NuDigest: Early Mobility – Moving to Learn

    A young woman and a girl using early mobility supports play a card game together in a colorful classroom. Both are smiling and focused on the cards, sharing a joyful and engaging moment while moving to learn.

    Mobility. What does that mean? Getting from point A to point B to perform a task of some type. Mobility is not exercise. Adults are very goal-oriented in their mobility. For infants and children, self-initiated mobility is Mobility. What does that mean? Getting from point A to point B to perform a task of some…

  • NuDigest: Aging with Disabilities – The Importance of the Right Information

    An elderly man aging with disabilities enjoys a garden as a smiling woman stands behind him, gently holding the wheelchair. They are surrounded by blooming flowers and greenery on a sunny day.

    As complex rehabilitation technology evaluators and providers, we need to understand all available information, from both the client and the medical community, and how this can contribute to the evaluation and provision processes.

  • NuDigest: Purpose & Process of a Clinical Seating Evaluation for a Complex Rehab Technology Device

    A person in a powered wheelchair, utilizing complex rehab technology, moves along a paved pathway near large rocks, with only the lower part of the wheelchair and the person’s legs visible.

    The seating and mobility evaluation is one of the most critical aspects of ensuring the medical necessity and appropriateness of a CRT device for a client. The goals of the seating evaluation can include: decreasing effects of abnormal tone/reflexes/movement disorders, providing forces to correct or accommodate postural tendencies and abnormalities, accommodate sensory impairments, improve functional/ADL…

  • NuDigest: Factors to Consider When Choosing Powered Seating Tilt, Recline, and Standing Features

    An older man in a motorized wheelchair sits on a wheelchair lift with tilt recline next to an SUV with its rear hatch open, showing the powered seating and lift mechanism for loading the chair into the vehicle.

    The ability to move independently to obtain pressure and postural relief is good for everyone.

  • NuDigest: Introduction to Complex Rehab Technology Wheelchair Systems

    A smiling family walks outdoors on a sunny day; a woman walks beside a man who is pushing a young girl in a wheelchair with advanced Complex Rehab Technology along a paved path, with trees and a wooden fence in the background.

    Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) products augment or replace function, providing support surfaces and mobility bases that enable an individual to participate in everyday life to whatever extent they are capable.