Category: Custom Wheelchair Configuration

  • NuDigest: The Roles and Partnership of Clinicians and the ATP/ Supplier in the Provision of CRT

    A man sits on a stool indoors, focused on service and repair of a wheelchair with tools. Several other wheelchairs and mobility devices surround him, with a wall listing names visible in the background.

    The provision of Complex Rehabilitation equipment is often considered an art and a science that is best provided through the partnership, or team, of licensed medical professionals and Assistive Technology Professional (ATP) suppliers. A united and knowledgeable team, composed of a therapist and ATP Supplier, works best for the client as each has their own roles and responsibilities. Working together, the…

  • NuDigest: The Keys to Successful Custom Contoured Seating Interventions: An Overview

    A young man in a motorized wheelchair, wearing a green and white varsity jacket, smiles while holding a game controller. He benefits from custom contoured seating, and is seated outside near sliding glass doors with a tray attached to his chair.

    Providing seating interventions for individuals with very complex impairments can be quite challenging. One of the tools available to address complex needs is custom contoured seating. Many years ago, this approach was born of orthotic approaches that emphasized “total contact” to provide both postural control and pressure distribution. As with any other seating intervention, the…

  • NuDigest: Custom Molded Seating: Getting it Right for Your Client

    A blue and black wheelchair with Custom Molded Seating is displayed in multiple reclined positions, illustrating its adjustable tilting function against a white background.

    Custom-molded seating in different iterations has been around since the mid to late 1970’s when several therapists and technicians at developmental centers around the country began experimenting with weather balloons filled with small beads and glue to make shapes around very asymmetric patients who had no good way to get out of bed because they…

  • NuDigest: The Hands-On Mat Evaluation for the Complex Rehab Client

    A man pushes a motorized wheelchair up a ramp into a white service van labeled “nMotion,” featuring graphics and text for complex rehab, wheelchair service, and repair. Equipment is visible outside the van.

    Imagine that you’ve gone to visit your physician. She enters the exam room, stands at the door and says, “Looks like those glands are swollen. You must have an infection, here’s a prescription for antibiotics. Let me know if you have any more problems.” She never physically examined you … how does she know what’s…

  • NuDigest: The Mathematics of Complex Rehab Seating

    A person’s hand operates the joystick control of an electric wheelchair outdoors. The person, dressed in a patterned dress, uses complex rehab seating for enhanced support. The background is green and blurred.

    Have you ever thought about all of the mathematics that go into the proper set-up of a manual mobility device? Disregard the obvious calculations such as subtracting the thickness of the cushion from the lower leg length measurement to achieve the proper footrest height, or adding the thickness of the solid back to the seat…

  • NuDigest: All Manual Wheelchairs Are Not Equal

    Two wheelchair icons, one orange and one blue, represent a wheelchair comparison and are separated by a not equal to symbol. Below them is an orange banner with the text NuDigest and a document icon.

    In the confusing world of durable medical equipment, many pieces of equipment are labeled “wheelchair.” But, not all manual wheelchairs are equal. Manual wheelchairs are categorized by these codes: Significant advancements have been made in wheelchair manufacturing and material quality.However, depot or lightweight wheelchairs (K0001-K0003) have no minimum Medicare or accrediting body requirements to meet…

  • 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.

  • NuDigest: Avoiding Pressure Injuries & Other Complications With Proper Seating & Wheelchair Systems

    A woman in a white dress and teal scarf smiles while sitting in a modern electric wheelchair system outdoors, surrounded by stone structures and blooming flowers.

    Determining a cushion that provides appropriate pressure distribution and positioning for a client is not a trivial task and is critical to the long term health and overall comfort/sitting tolerance of the wheelchair user.