Return to Driving

Some injuries, even mild ones, can impact the skills that are critical for safe operation of a vehicle. Here are some of the many health considerations involved in driving.

• Visual changes: Double or blurred vision, light sensitivity, decreased side vision, difficulty judging distances, and impaired perception skills
• Visual motion sensitivity: Difficulty scanning the environment and shifting focus between mirrors, the road, and vehicle controls, which can lead to dizziness, nausea, and headaches
• Impaired motor skills: Slowed reaction time, impaired eye-hand coordination, and difficulty turning the head and neck to look around
• Impaired thinking skills: Impaired memory, judgment, and awareness, slowed speed of thinking, difficulty concentrating, and mental fatigue
• Sensory dysfunction: Feeling sensitive to light, noise, or movement, which in combination with other problems can result in common symptoms such as nausea, dizziness, anxiety, and headache
• Impaired emotional regulation: Difficulty managing emotions like anxiety or frustration, which can affect the way a person handles stressful driving situations

Transporting your loved one safely is an essential part of day-to-day life following significant injuries.

Wheelchairs are equipped with an array of features, such as anchor points for securing the transit wheelchair to the frame of a bus or van, and attachment points for restraining the wheelchair occupant to the chair.

The WC19 Wheelchair Safety Standard addresses issues that improve the safety and security of the wheelchair occupant during transportation. These safety measures apply to all aspects of transportation, but particularly in the event of a vehicle crash. Recommendations include:

• Never leave the wheelchair occupied passenger in a vehicle unattended.
• The wheelchair, independent of an occupant, must be secured to vehicle.
• Use the four-point strap tie-down method taught by your therapist.
• Secure points must be easily accessible.
• Wheelchair occupants should face forward, not to the side.
• Lap tray attachments must be removed and stowed securely.
• All wheelchair safety and positioning attachments, such as seatbelts, chest straps, and head rests, are required to be in place.
• Even though the wheelchair has a seat belt attached, you still need to use a second, vehicle-mounted lap and shoulder belt.
• Provide both upper and lower torso seat belts, such as lap and shoulder belts.
• Position seat belts over the skeletal regions of the body, such as hip bones and shoulders, not over the abdomen.
• Use belt restraint systems regulated by federal motor vehicle safety standards.
• Achieve lap belt angles of between 45 to 75 degrees to the horizontal, with an angle of 30 degrees or more to the occupant’s thigh angle.
• The driver and a second caregiver must be able to access the wheelchair occupied passenger efficiently.
• A wheelchair backrest should not be reclined or tilted more than 30 degrees to the vertical. This maximum angle is intended to help maintain effective performance of belt-type restraint systems by having the shoulder belts close to, and preferably in contact with, the chest and shoulders.
• Keep objects away from the passenger that may be thrown or may distract the driver.
• Use child locks to prohibit the wheelchair passenger’s access to window controls.
• Use mirrors to assist with monitoring the wheelchair passenger.
• Reduce or eliminate possible concerns regarding sensitivity to sound, temperature, light, and movement.