I'm now in the phase of my PhD dissertation research where I need to have my research conclusions picked over and validated (or not validated) by people who've bought and used wheelchairs. Once again, I turn to the DKOS community to ask if anyone's interested in participating in evaluating the research.
I'll start this by saying that I'm not disabled and none of my family members have bought or used wheelchairs (though friends have), so my research is actually in an area that I have no personal experience with. Everyone who answered my questions taught me something new about a world that I realize I was very unprepared for. I'm wiser now, and if I or a family member needs a wheelchair (electric or manual) I'm better prepared to cope with it. But most people have this situation thrust on them suddenly and have to learn how to negotiate a minefield of information and misinformation.
One professor told me that everyone who has been disabled since birth in the last 50 years or so knows how to buy wheelchairs and where to get information on them... but what I've learned from the survey and stories is that This Ain't Necessarily So.
So. I have conclusions. But this is "participant research" so that means my next step is to take my conclusions and go to people who are wheelchair users and ask "did I get it right? Am I seeing the wrong thing?"
If you know anyone who would be interested in participating, I would ask that they answer a short questionnaire on SurveyMonkey and then I'll send them my results and they can have fun beating up a scientist if she got anything wrong -- or adding new useful conclusions to the research.
This is not country-specific. I'm glad to hear from people who have bought them on behalf of family members.
If you know someone who would participate, have them send me a message... and thanks, DKos, as always, for help and advice.