Grand Valley State University (GVSU) Skills on Wheels

NCT ID: NCT05339932

Last Updated: 2025-09-15

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 4 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2022-05-05
• Study Completion Date: 2027-12-31

Brief Summary

Manual wheelchairs (MWCs) are widely used by children with physical disabilities, yet many of these children are unable to use their wheelchair independently. Instead, they depend on others to push them. This dependency results in limited opportunities to decide what they want to do and where they want to go, leading to learned helplessness, social isolation, decreased participation, and restricted involvement in physical activities. Furthermore, unsafe MWC use increases the risk of injury, as highlighted by the 44,300 children treated each year in emergency departments for MWC-related injuries. While independent MWC mobility can positively influence quality of life, MWC skills training must also be provided to promote safe, independent MWC use. The effectiveness of MWC training programs for adults is well established, yet the current standard-of-care does not include MWC skills training for children and research regarding the efficacy of pediatric MWC skills training programs is limited. Skills on Wheels seeks to address these gaps and provide pilot data for a future large-scale, multi-site research project involving a randomized controlled trial. Aim 1 is to explore the influence of Skills on Wheels on children's MWC skills and confidence in their MWC use. Aim 2 is to investigate the influence of Skills on Wheels on children's psychosocial skills, social participation, and adaptive behavior.

Detailed Description

Manual wheelchairs (MWCs) are widely used by children with physical disabilities, yet many of these children are unable to use their wheelchair independently. Instead, they depend on others to push them. This dependency results in limited opportunities to decide what they want to do and where they want to go, leading to learned helplessness, social isolation, decreased participation, and restricted involvement in physical activities. Furthermore, unsafe MWC use increases the risk of injury, as highlighted by the 44,300 children treated each year in emergency departments for MWC-related injuries. While independent MWC mobility can positively influence quality of life, MWC skills training must also be provided to promote safe, independent MWC use. The effectiveness of MWC training programs for adults is well established, yet the current standard-of-care does not include MWC skills training for children and research regarding the efficacy of pediatric MWC skills training programs is limited. Skills on Wheels seeks to address these gaps and provide pilot data for a future large-scale, multi-site research project involving a randomized controlled trial. The final outcomes and significance of this project are as follows: Aim 1 is to explore the influence of Skills on Wheels on children's MWC skills and confidence in their MWC use and Aim 2 is to investigate the influence of Skills on Wheels on children's psychosocial skills, social participation, and adaptive behavior.

Conditions

Spina Bifida; Cerebral Palsy; Genetic Disease; Spinal Cord Injuries; Gross Motor Development Delay; Motor Skills Disorders

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Manual wheelchair skills training

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Manual Wheelchair Skills Training

Intervention Type: OTHER

The intervention involves manual wheelchair skills training.

Interventions

Manual Wheelchair Skills Training

The intervention involves manual wheelchair skills training.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• 5-17 years of age. NOTE: Participants must be under 18 for the duration of the study.
• Have a condition resulting in difficulties walking.
• Use a manual wheelchair greater than or equal to 25% of the time
• Are able to follow simple instructions per parent report
• Has at least one parent/caregiver who is able to converse in English (as assessed by the PI during interactions over the phone and in person) due to safety concerns.
• Resides in Michigan

Exclusion Criteria

• Any reason that it would not be safe for the child to participate in manual wheelchair training (as assessed by the PI, a licensed physical therapist)
• The child's manual wheelchair is not safe (as assessed by the PI, a licensed physical therapist)

• Minimum Eligible Age: 5 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 17 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Grand Valley State University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Lisa Kenyon

Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

Grand Valley State University

Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

22-226-H

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id