It is surprising how many times how many time when you are out in a wheelchair be attendant controlled or self propelled that you cannot get where you want to go, either there are steps or doorways are not wide enough and despite all the legislation in place it seems so slow to improve.
With steps you can always be prepared in advance by having little extras like roll up ramps with you but that is not very helpful if you are actually out on your own in a self propelled wheelchair. Obviously if you are in a wheelchair in which yuo are being pushed by a carer or loved one it is possible to put a ramp down and go up the steps or to reverse up with the carer pulling the passenger up but that can be a difficult experience.
Sometimes it is possible for the wheelchair user to stand for a moment and then negotiate the steps before returning to the wheelchair but it does depend on the steps involved and on how deep they are. Unfortunately if somebody is in a wheelchair for a short while whilst recovering from an illness or injury they be in more danger than a person totally restricted to using a wheelchair. Suddenly everyone wants to have a ‘go’ at pushing them and they, the pushers, do not recognise or see problems, the slightly raised kerb or a step that would not worry anyone who is walking but will cause a wheelchair to come to an abrupt halt almost throwing the passenger out of the chair.
Wheelchairs are available in so many different sizes and configurations that there should be some thing to suit anyone in need of one, you can even select colours that will make you feel brighter but until the law is enforced properly there will still be far to many places that wheelchairs cannot go!
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