New power chair and conversion van

[SueM in MN]

Also I need to raise the footplate to like enter the van as it will scrape ramp. Now maybe this will change once the rep returns to put in the bolt that was left off under footplate. But like at dinner last night to closer to table I had to raise footplate, I need something to raise it without me having to lean down to do it.

I saw from your first post that your wheelchair is a Q600, which I am assuming is a Jazzy wheelchair from Pride Medical. They actually have a Discussion Forum on the Pride website. Maybe someone else who has your same wheelchair will be able to help you out.

We have not had any problems with DD's wheelchair on our van ramp, but our van 'kneels' so the ramp might not be as steep as yours. The one problem we are having is that the new wheelchair tries to 'climb over' anything in its way. Right now, the ezlock that we are not using is in its way. That has made for some interesting trips into the van.

Oh, DD's new wheelchair is an Invacare TDX3 with TruTrack (to help with driving straight). She has a Jay deep contour gel seat and back. She's not very tall, so her footplates are actually about 6.5 inches from the ground. I think the book says you would run into clearance problems if there was less than 3 inches.

 

[brady961]

I saw from your first post that your wheelchair is a Q600, which I am assuming is a Jazzy wheelchair from Pride Medical. They actually have a Discussion Forum on the Pride website. Maybe someone else who has your same wheelchair will be able to help you out.

We have not had any problems with DD's wheelchair on our van ramp, but our van 'kneels' so the ramp might not be as steep as yours. The one problem we are having is that the new wheelchair tries to 'climb over' anything in its way. Right now, the ezlock that we are not using is in its way. That has made for some interesting trips into the van.

Oh, DD's new wheelchair is an Invacare TDX3 with TruTrack (to help with driving straight). She has a Jay deep contour gel seat and back. She's not very tall, so her footplates are actually about 6.5 inches from the ground. I think the book says you would run into clearance problems if there was less than 3 inches.

Thanks Sue. Its a Quantum 600 which basically means its a Jazzy 600 but with more torque and rehab seating. I have Synergy Solutions for cushions. TruBalance tilt/recline.

I am active on the Pride Mobility message boards, unfort there isn't much overall activity. But still a good resource at times.

The loaner van I am using right now also kneels. My van that will be delivered next week will also kneel. Its a Braun Entervan.

Yeah my footplate is low to the ground. I am going to ask rep when he comes back to make adjustments to raise it at least one notch. Plus he is bringing me lateral supports to try. WIthout lateral support I lean or fall over to the side esp left. even when used the scooter I always kept a pillow on left side to help keep me from falling/leaning over too much. I used a pillow yesterday and today in power chair. It works ok, and actually I like the pillow there as it gives me higher place to rest left arm. And I feel secure. Will see how the lateral supports feel and work.

Am finding that when sitting straight up my legs still seem to not be like 90' degrees but go lower from thigh to knees. Also when I recline/tilt my feet/shoes don't reach the footplate therefore don't reach the heel strap support. So I feel raising it one notch at least will help me sit better, and feel more secure esp in tilt/recline.

If I am sitting straight up, I feel like am going forward, not really falling forward but I guess leaning. Which I believe in part is due to the footplate position. And the headrest needs to be pushed back a fraction as that too makes me feel leaning or going forward.

Since it's a new chair the rep said there will be many adjustments to come as I get use to it, using it, and find what I need, don't, where, etc.....

Oh another issue for me in turning is distance between what is behind me and back of chair which has a backpack hanging. I have knocked things off here at home, rubbed against walls, railings, etc.. <G>

I have to remind myself, I just rec'd this chair a couple weeks ago. And until yesterday have only used it in my two room apartment. Only yesterday did I get to use it out in public, i.e. dinner, epcot, and today at walmart, library (attended a support group mtg for this disease) and walgreens.

I keep telling myself its going to take time, I am going to make mistakes, hit things, runover something, scratch a wall/door, etc.... that I don't have to be perfect in using a new device for me, and esp something this large.


I have seen pics of the invacare chair. I had three options that were on my insurance coverage: Pride q600, Permobil C300, and Quickie Freestyle (think that was name). The permobil just seemed so much larger and I was informed may be difficult to get serviced. The Pride I liked the casters better than the quickie, plus on the Pride could get the footplate and not two foot rests like on quickie.

Give your daughter best wishes on using her new chair.

 

[dclfun]

It sounds to me like you just need to have some adjustments made. I have a Permobil C500 with tilt/recline/elevating footrests and elevating seat. I never thought I'd need or want the elevating seat but I use it all the time to help me get under spaces or up to get something that's out of reach due to height. I've never seen the chair you have or know what features it can have- or I've probably seen it but just never noticed the type/brand. The Permobil is long but it maneuvers well. The bus drivers at WDW groan inwardly when they see me waiting ( I can tell) but then are amazed as I enter and instantly swivel into place. I'm on my second one and have had no problems getting repairs done. I use Baycare and they come to my home for everything including changing the batteries. Sounds like your chair may need elevating footrests so they can be adjusted or at least to be placed so that your feet touch them even when tilting or reclining. I have lateral supports and thigh supports but if you're not using a chest strap you can still fall out if not careful. Also if your cushion isn't the right height or have enough air in it ( if it's a Roho, for instance) then it can affect your seating in the chair. Hopefully after using the chair for a few days you'll be able to tell the rep exactly what you need to be comfortable and also safe. I know when I got my new Permobil last year I expected it to "feel" exactly the same. It had the same comfort but there were still minor adjustments to the seat back, etc. so that I was able to reach the joystick in my van. I guess every chair is a bit different. Keep having fun!---Kathy

 

[SueM in MN]

It was late afternoon when DD got her new powerwheelchair delivered and they adjusted it to her. The footpates seemed to be in a fine place and her feet rested on them just right.
We didn't think much of it until the next morning when we put her into the chair and her heels didn't reach the footplates - her toes barely touched. We tried to raise them, but the holes would not line up. As it turned out, the tech had to cut off some of the pole because the pole was too long to fasten it up in a higher hole.
Not sure if this makes sense, but the point of it was that DD is much tighter in the morning and by afternoon, when the chair was delivered, she is loosened up and (I guess you could say) has longer legs. So, if you have a period of the day when you have 'shorter legs' you may want to have the chair adjusted then.

 

[shovan]

The last time DD saw a new doctor, he asked how many toes she has broken!
He says most people with power wheelchairs break one or more sooner or later by misjudging distances and jamming into something with their feet. I'm glad to say that DD has not broken any -yet- and hope not to.

Well that sure is scary! My DH has luckily not done that! DH has an Invacare M61 with SureTrack & boy it really does try to go over everything! Not always succesfully either.

Brady, Dh had to have the WC guys come out several times & go back & meet with the physical therapist with the WC people to get his set up correctly for him.
Stil after all that he still regularly bangs up his knees. It's pretty typical for him to come home from work with a bloody knee! His legs spread out past the sides of the chair & he misjudges tight spaces & wack! He had tried the typical WC-type leg/footrests but this kept him from being able to move his upper body around at all. That caused him to stiffen up more & caused backache & more weakness. So he went back to just the footplate with a small strap around his legs to keep them on the footplate but still bangs his knees up. The huge gouges in the walls & woodwork at home are mostly from me moving the chair!!
I guess it just takes time for each individual to figure out what works best for them. And a wheelchair company willing to make sure that it's right!

 

[brady961]

i am happy that this weekend at how well i did esp since friday was first day to be out of house with it, and to be at Disney World, and it was crowded.

But boy judging the distance between feet/footplate, or turning the space behind you WOW.

Today I brought in the travel power chair to see if would come up the ramp. HOORAY it does. Well now this is a little chair and what do I do??????

I scrape the paint off the bedroom door, like two lines half across the door. Did I do that with the large power chair???? No. I did take off a small patch of paint on door sill, but not this long two lines half away across the door. I do that with the little chair LOL.

Van company picked it up this morning. I had to go use chair getting in van, getting transfer seat where I want it to transfer, then he figured out where to put the ezlock floor bracket. He tied down the chair right where the bracket needs to go, so when got back to company knew where to put it.

He is to bring me MY van HOORAY!!! and the chair back on Wednesday. VR has to check out van, like inspection so he didn't know time he would deliver both back. I asked if what if VR can't do inspection on Wed????? I have to have this chair and van by Thursday. Going to POP-WDW Friday morning. Want to load van Thursday night. He said if VR can't then he would still leave it with me, and get VR inspection next week.

I should get lots of practice this weekend as spending Fri-Sun at WDW with friends.

I did enjoy the chair though, it was more comfortable that I expected although i definitely need the lateral supports. I feel blessed and thankful to have the chair, van, new ramp, sidewalk, etc....

thanks to you all for your support and encouragement. and esp sharing your own or loved ones experiences.

 

[dclfun]

To the OP....have fun this weekend and enjoy your new freedom! To "Shovan"...sounds like your husband needs the lateral thigh supports. That's the only thing that keeps my legs together. They should also be able to provide a strap that goes across the lower thighs if the supports aren't good enough. There's no reason he should suffer with banged up knees. ---Kathy

 

[shovan]

To the OP....have fun this weekend and enjoy your new freedom! To "Shovan"...sounds like your husband needs the lateral thigh supports. That's the only thing that keeps my legs together. They should also be able to provide a strap that goes across the lower thighs if the supports aren't good enough. There's no reason he should suffer with banged up knees. ---Kathy

Kathy, where are the thigh supports attached? To the chair seat? That might work, it might not.
When his legs are pulled together to tightly he is unable to "rock" his lower torso to adjust his position at all. That causes him to stiffen up all over which just makes everything worse. Besides he's a guy & he thinks beat up knees are not even an issue! You know being a tough guy & all! Honestly though he really is tough, before he stopped trying to walk, he has split his mouth open requiring oral surgery, broken his leg twice, second time needed a pin put in & mutiple other bangs & bruises over the years! But he just wasn't going to give up & I'm sure that was a good thing. When he was first diagnosed at 22 years old the dr.s tried to get him in a WC immediately, didn't want him exercising or anything. Now the lastest issue of Quest has all kinds of recommedations & suggestions for exercising! So I guess it was a good thing he didn't listen to them!

 

[shovan]

Brady, I hope you get your van back tomorrow! Hope you have a really fun weekend at Pop!

p.s. How is the vest working? Is it helping enough where you'll be able to be out in the heat more?

 

[dclfun]

The thigh supports are attached to a bar on the seat itself and can be adusted forward, backwards, up, and down and even "in" a bit. They've helped alot. The don't press my legs together but just keep them from going outside the dimensions of the seat cushion itself. I usually use the tilt feature and pushing back with my elbows to try and get repositioned. I can't do much but it's usually enough to give a little relief. I'm interest to hear about the cooling vest. I really need to look into getting one for my service dog. Last year I found someone on the boards who was making the cooling neck wraps and had some made in matching Disney fabrics for both of us. I've also tried putting the cooling packs in her vest but then it's very heavy. I was thinking about having someone make an attachment to her vest that would have the gel beads inside to work like the neck wraps but they take a long time then to dry out. If there's something manufactured that would be alot better. The heat bothers me too, but at least I'm not wearing a black fur coat!---Kathy

 

[shovan]

The thigh supports are attached to a bar on the seat itself and can be adusted forward, backwards, up, and down and even "in" a bit. They've helped alot. The don't press my legs together but just keep them from going outside the dimensions of the seat cushion itself. I usually use the tilt feature and pushing back with my elbows to try and get repositioned. I can't do much but it's usually enough to give a little relief. I'm interest to hear about the cooling vest. I really need to look into getting one for my service dog. Last year I found someone on the boards who was making the cooling neck wraps and had some made in matching Disney fabrics for both of us. I've also tried putting the cooling packs in her vest but then it's very heavy. I was thinking about having someone make an attachment to her vest that would have the gel beads inside to work like the neck wraps but they take a long time then to dry out. If there's something manufactured that would be alot better. The heat bothers me too, but at least I'm not wearing a black fur coat!---Kathy

Thanks for the info on the thigh supports, we'll look into it to see if it would work for him & with his chair!
I think even though DH just got a new chair last year, he should have been fitted with a different type of seat. He doesn't have the "rehab" type seat, just a regular seat that goes up & down. Which btw the insurance company has refused to pay for. Get this, the power seat that just adjusts up & down is considered a "luxury" item! Well, at least they finally paid for most of the chair, they were refusing to pay for the whole thing because of the power seat! So when it finally all processed we will probably have to pay about $1700 for his chair.

 

[dclfun]

If your insurance refused to pay for the elevating seat then you would need to have your P.T. or physician write a script that it's a medical necessity. I had no problems getting mine covered without a fight, but the service provider also told me that VR would pay for that feature if the insurance company didn't since it would be necessary at a place of employment to reach things and adjust the seat up/down to fit under a workspace or a meeting table, etc. Heck, it's necessary everywhere! I am fortunate to have a wonderful case manager at Cigna who will approve everything I need instantly via fax. My first chair though, the same type, was purchase through VR who also approved the elevating seat as well as the tilt/recline/elevating foot rests. Hope that helps!---Kathy

 

[shovan]

If your insurance refused to pay for the elevating seat then you would need to have your P.T. or physician write a script that it's a medical necessity. I had no problems getting mine covered without a fight, but the service provider also told me that VR would pay for that feature if the insurance company didn't since it would be necessary at a place of employment to reach things and adjust the seat up/down to fit under a workspace or a meeting table, etc. Heck, it's necessary everywhere! I am fortunate to have a wonderful case manager at Cigna who will approve everything I need instantly via fax. My first chair though, the same type, was purchase through VR who also approved the elevating seat as well as the tilt/recline/elevating foot rests. Hope that helps!---Kathy

We had the physician script for it & that didn't help. Then the WC company called our Rehab Services, as they had told us to have it go through the insurance co. first & see what happens with that. Now, RS tells us that they can not pay anything on it because he has already received the WC!!! The counselor apolgized saying that she made a mistake, but that still means plenty money out of our pockets. We are also checking with MDA, but the financial assistance from them has really been getting cut back the past couple of years.

 

[brady961]

Well I finally have things in place. Sidewalk, ramp, extended landing, power chair and my New Braun entervan. I picked the van up yesterday !!!!!

It has ezlock system which WOW it so much better than tie downs I was using on the loaner van.

I went out this morning to like 6 or 6 stops. What a difference it was getting in/out of the van, into where I needed to with the chair etc....

Oh yeah and the transfer seat is great too in the van.

All the errands, and stops I had to do this morning would normally have worn me out after the first two. But I managed to get it all done, and it was so much easier than ever before.

Am excited to finally have things in place.

I am taking tomorrow off and heading to Disney World for the weekend. Ok I know I live 30 mins and go often. But this weekend i have friends coming into town so I decided to stay on property with them. I used the chair last Sunday at the parks and did great.

I actually didn't take out one person LOL.

Jammed my feet several times between chair, wall and/or doors etc....

Still have to learn to distinguish distance in front and back, esp turning. But that will come with practice.

I also went to Home Depot and bought a few small tools to carry along with me. Sunday at WDW a cast member rode my chair to exit so it would be there when I got off the ride. Well she must have hit something very hard. When I got off ride and back into chair, the entire control panel/module was loose, I could turn it 360 degrees, and my t-bar joystick was vertical.

I had to wait for maintence to come tighten the loose bolts. So I decided I would carry a couple basic small tools in little bag. That way I can tighten things if needed. I got a screwdriver that has 6 different tips. An Allen wrench with like 8 sizes. And one plier that can be adjusted to fit many sizes. Each small enough to fit into a cosmetic bag I already had here at home. Now it will be interesting to see if having these tools cause difficulty getting thru at airports <G>

anyway, i feel so blessed to have all these new items/devices. Oh yeah my van has power rearlift gate. WOW. I push the button it opens, I put what i just bought in, push button and liftgate closes. May not sound like much to some, but for me what a blessing to have this feature.

Chair Rep (RTS) comes Monday so do some adjustments.

ok enough rambling.

thanks everyone for all your support and encouragement.

 

[shovan]

Well I finally have things in place. Sidewalk, ramp, extended landing, power chair and my New Braun entervan. I picked the van up yesterday !!!!!

It has ezlock system which WOW it so much better than tie downs I was using on the loaner van.

I went out this morning to like 6 or 6 stops. What a difference it was getting in/out of the van, into where I needed to with the chair etc....

Oh yeah and the transfer seat is great too in the van.

All the errands, and stops I had to do this morning would normally have worn me out after the first two. But I managed to get it all done, and it was so much easier than ever before.

Am excited to finally have things in place.

I am taking tomorrow off and heading to Disney World for the weekend. Ok I know I live 30 mins and go often. But this weekend i have friends coming into town so I decided to stay on property with them. I used the chair last Sunday at the parks and did great.

I actually didn't take out one person LOL.

Jammed my feet several times between chair, wall and/or doors etc....

Still have to learn to distinguish distance in front and back, esp turning. But that will come with practice.

I also went to Home Depot and bought a few small tools to carry along with me. Sunday at WDW a cast member rode my chair to exit so it would be there when I got off the ride. Well she must have hit something very hard. When I got off ride and back into chair, the entire control panel/module was loose, I could turn it 360 degrees, and my t-bar joystick was vertical.

I had to wait for maintence to come tighten the loose bolts. So I decided I would carry a couple basic small tools in little bag. That way I can tighten things if needed. I got a screwdriver that has 6 different tips. An Allen wrench with like 8 sizes. And one plier that can be adjusted to fit many sizes. Each small enough to fit into a cosmetic bag I already had here at home. Now it will be interesting to see if having these tools cause difficulty getting thru at airports <G>

anyway, i feel so blessed to have all these new items/devices. Oh yeah my van has power rearlift gate. WOW. I push the button it opens, I put what i just bought in, push button and liftgate closes. May not sound like much to some, but for me what a blessing to have this feature.

Chair Rep (RTS) comes Monday so do some adjustments.

ok enough rambling.

thanks everyone for all your support and encouragement.

Wow, I'm so glad for you!!!! I'm sure you'll have a blast this weekend, too!

Your idea to carry small tools is a great one! I think we may have to do the same. DH's joystick was hanging upside down a couple of times after WDW employee's moved it too. Not anything we needed tools for, but it could have been worse. When we flew, I took off the whole connection with the joystick & they stored it in the luggage compartment on the plane. The guys moving it seemed to prefer pushing it anyway & that way when we arrived it's still driveable.

I love the automatic rear hatch on DH's van too. In fact we asked the van company if that could be installed on my Chrysler Pacifica. I'm really short & when it's open it's hard to reach & tough to pull down. But the guy said after market ones don't work well at all, so unless it was really a neccesity he wouldn't recommend it.

Again so glad to hear things are going so well for you!

 

[SueM in MN]

Wow, I'm so glad for you!!!! I'm sure you'll have a blast this weekend, too!

Your idea to carry small tools is a great one! I think we may have to do the same. DH's joystick was hanging upside down a couple of times after WDW employee's moved it too. Not anything we needed tools for, but it could have been worse. When we flew, I took off the whole connection with the joystick & they stored it in the luggage compartment on the plane. The guys moving it seemed to prefer pushing it anyway & that way when we arrived it's still driveable.

We carry a set of tools when we travel. We used to put them in our checked baggage, then one year it wasn't in our bag when we got it from baggage claim. Apparently either someone in security or baggage handling stole it.
The last 3 or 4 times we traveled, we had it in our carry on and no one said anything about it.

We were thinking of taking DD's power wheelchair, but didn't end up doing it. The wheelchair tech had suggested unscrewing several screws to disconnect the joystick from the wheelchair armrest. Her wheechair has removable armrests, so our plan was to just disconnect the wiring (there is a quick connect link to attach the wires together) and then take off the whole armrest, with the joystick still on.

 

[brady961]

thanks. hope things work out on getting power hatch rearlift gate. sure has made a difference for me today.