- Views: 7
- Report Article
- Articles
- Automotive
- Vans
Inertia of the adapted automobiles – Wheelchair Accessible Vans
Posted: Apr 15, 2015
A wheelchair, as the name suggests, is a chair with wheels that help individuals who have mobility impairments, to move. But moving for a person is not limited to movements inside the house; it also includes travelling from one place to another. Vehicles have been engineered to become an inseparable part of our daily living and hence the discussion of "Adapted Automobiles" or Wheelchair Accessible Vans is slowly becoming all the more important.
Configuration Technicalities – What should you know?
A wheelchair-accessible van is a kind of an adapted automobile that has been modified to increase the interior size to make it equipped for the means a wheelchair, such as ramp, lift, or turning seat.
These modifications are done keeping in mind the multi-dimensional need of a disabled person – as a driver or as a passenger.
Some general modifications that are made are:
- Seats are modified to allow wheelchair access.
- External means of wheelchairs are added.
- Wheelchair tie-downs are installed.
- The floor of the vehicle is lowered and reinforced to hold the extra weight.
Social Acceptance
Disability is still considered a taboo in most part of the country. One of the major outcry of the disabled is for the "Rights and not Charity." To ensure equality for the disabled we need to make sure that they are given opportunity and assistance to overcome the physical limitation and explore how they can be a productive social being.
Out of the estimated 650 million people with disabilities in the world, 400 million live in the Asian and Pacific region and over 40% of them live in poverty. The cost of a wheel-chair ranges from as low as $400 to the whooping amount of over $1000. But we tend to overlook the fact that the needs of a human being are not restricted to his/her household. The measure of self-esteem comes largely from the parameters of social acceptance which in turn is derived from the participation of a person in the realm of social customs.
While some high end hotels and corporate organizations have facilities for disabled people, commuting through the daily life is still a hazard. The sheer unavailability of someone dedicated to carry and drive a wheelchair-bound person from one place to another; confines the later; giving rise to isolation and depression. The humiliation in depending on someone else in order to experience a social life and acceptability of the community is excruciating.
Being able to travel and drive and becoming self-sufficient for the daily needs, is a major requisite to ensure the constitutional rights of a disabled person. We need to understand the subtle difference between patronizing and empathy.
Means to Ensure Equality
Wheelchair Accessible Vans are not a luxury as much as any other vehicle. It gives confidence to the disabled individual to be able to remain mobile in the course of livelihood. It is a beacon of hope for the individual and his/her other family members.
Get yourself used wheelchair van at Better Life Mobility. Browse handicap van inventory online and request more info from sales staff.
Todd Dawson Is a freelance writer