Day 25: Hunting for a Power Wheelchair

 

    As I mentioned in a post earlier this month (Day 4: Becoming an Ambulatory Wheelchair User (saltyzebra.blogspot.com) I am exploring my options with mobility aids.  I am perfectly capable of getting around the house (for the most part) and I can walk to and from the car and buildings, but if my outing involves much more walking than that I struggle.  Grocery shopping, walks in the park, even events that involve a lot of walking/standing around wear me out quickly and I develop quite a bit of pain in my legs.  I believe my challenges are a combination of low energy and lax ankle joints that put a lot of burden on my calf muscles - not to mention invite injury.

    We've explored the option with our insurance company and been informed that they will only pay for a chair for me to be used in the home.  If the chair is able to fold up and go in the car then they will not cover it.  They only believe it is medically necessary for me to be able to perform my basic functions of daily life within the walls of my house.  My husband and I both find this unacceptable as getting out of the house is so important for physical, mental, and emotional health.  We feel it is important to act as an advocate for future ambulatory wheelchair users and pursue this matter with them, but in the mean time we will be purchasing our own chair out of pocket as the principle is not worth my health.

    So what are the options out there?  Well they are many and varied!  What it came down to for me though was weight and distance.  I'm not super strong and lifting heavy things is really tough on my back.  The lightest of these chairs weigh between 30-40lbs so that was my target.  Next is range.  The shortest range of the chairs I considered was 10miles and the longest was 20.  The key is that these are ideal ranges and I'm guessing they were determined without a passenger in the chair.  Your actual range will likely be less than that and decrease as the battery ages.  Finally, a consideration for me is wheel size.  The smaller the wheels the less likely the chair will be able to traverse any non-flat terrain. 

    Unfortunately, my ideal chair is a combination of these.  I like the power of the motor along with the size of the wheels and range on the Porto Quattro, but it weighs in at 50lbs which I'm not sure I can handle.  Let's be honest though, I'm not sure I can handle 40 either.  It also comes with the highest price tag of $2,899.  The Lightest of the bunch, a MaritSA, only costs $899, but it's an unknown company with little or no customer service and no way to order extra parts, like an additional battery.  In its base form it only has a range of 10 miles (again, under ideal circumstances likely without anyone in the chair).  

    I put together a spreadsheet - which is pretty much how I approach any decision - and sent it to my husband to see what he thinks.  I'll update on the blog later to let you know what I decided and how it worked out!

Here's the thing:  There is no perfect product.  We just have to decide what is most important to us and hope for the best!