The Motorized Wheelchair – Is It For You?

The concept of a motorized wheelchair has been around for some time now and the designs are currently available on the market are extremely varied. Your choice of model will usually depend on your needs and the amount to which you need assistance in being mobile. You must factor these things in before making a purchase as electrical wheelchairs are often not the cheapest of items and represent an investment in your quality of life. Should you buy a model you are not happy using you could find yourself having spent an awful lot of money for absolutely nothing.

There are several types of wheelchair that are motorized; the most common of these are the models that still look like a normal wheelchair. Often these units can still be pushed around like normal but when the occupant finds themselves alone they can use the motor to get around. There are several ways that these models can be adapted to be control by the user. Some work with a simple hand controlled joystick where as others has been made that are controlled by the users mouth. It all comes down to the amount of mobility available to the user.

Another common type of power wheel chair is the electric scooter. These four wheeled little beauties are normally used by the elderly to get around. They come in two different types, front wheel drive and rear wheel drive. Front wheel drive models are often smaller and used to get around whilst inside a building where as the rear wheel drives models are designed for getting out and about. These models are often capable of quite high speeds considering their usual occupants. The range on this kind of mobility scooter is normally around 25 to 30 miles so it does open a lot of doors to the less mobile.

Whatever you reasoning for wanting to buy a wheelchair that is motorized there will certainly be a model to suit your needs. You might want to talk to your doctor or your health insurance company before making a purchase though as often there are means of buying them at a discounted price if you fulfill certain criteria. If the price of buy new is going to be too much there is always the option of buy one second hand. There are quite a few on the market at extremely reasonable prices. The choice is all yours at the end of the day.