Sport e attività fisica sono fondamentali per il benessere della persona. Gli atleti con disabilità sperimentano purtroppo numerose barriere per praticare attività sportiva. Tra le principali barriere bisogna infatti ricordare l’inadeguatezza delle Tecnologie Assistive e l’elevato costo per acquistarne una. Per le persone con disabilità, lo sport deve essere garantito a tutti i livelli. Sia amatoriale che professionistico. Questi sono i risultati principali del nostro studio, pubblicato su Disability and Rehabilitation Assistive Technology.
Athletes with disability‘satisfaction with sport wheelchairs: an Italian cross sectional study
Purpose
Physical activity is essential for health and well-being. People with physical disability often experience barriers in performing sports due to the lack of appropriate assistive technologies. The present research aimed to investigate athletes with disability satisfaction when using sports wheelchairs and to explore clinometric properties of the Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology (QUEST).
Materials and methods
One hundred and twenty-eight athletes were involved in the present study. Data on sport discipline and wheelchair provision were collected with qualitative approach. Internal consistency and reliability of QUEST were respectively analyzed with Cronbach’s Alpha and Intraclass Correlation Coefficient. Validity was investigated with the correlation of the Wheelchair Use Confidence Scale for Manual users.
Results
Results revealed good internal consistency (.858) and moderate inter-rater reliability for service subscale (.664) and for the total score (.675), while for device subscale (.802) reliability was high. Validity revealed moderate correlation (.300) with a p < 0.05. Qualitative analysis highlighted economic barriers as primary social determinant who affect participation in sport activities.
Conclusions
The present study confirms preliminary evidence of the QUEST for athletes with disability. The research group also recommends an international effort to promote a comprehensive evaluation of sports wheelchair involving rehabilitation professionals, sport technicians and people with disability.
Implications for rehabilitation
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Economic factors linked to the purchase of a wheelchair seem being the main barrier for practising sport
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The Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology is a useful tool to measure athletes’ satisfaction using a wheelchair
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Rehabilitation professionals and sport technicians should collaborate together with people with disability in determining how choose appropriate sport wheelchairs
Qui il link alla rivista
Berardi, A., Galeoto, G., Lucibello, L., Panuccio, F., Valente, D., & Tofani, M. (2020). Athletes with disability’satisfaction with sport wheelchairs: an Italian cross sectional study. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, 1-5.
https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2020.1800114
