Rehabilitation service evaluation: a follow-up of the extent of use of technical aids for disabled children.

The increased awareness of the benefits of rehabilitation technology will lead to an increased demand for services and may lead to discrepancies between needs and resources available. The present study was a regional follow-up of the use of 1278 technical aids. In this study the satisfaction with aids was high and quite near the optimum, but unsatisfactory areas were also identified. A better follow-up of the use of technical aids should be part of rehabilitation practice. Careful assessment of functional and psychosocial needs, goal attainment and environmental factors, and a good system of selection with available alternatives and proper instructions are the basic considerations for satisfactory technical aids.

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