The Driving Potential of Disabled People: Comparison Between Brain-Damaged and Non-Brain Damaged People

In 1990, 635 disabled individuals came to the Centre d'Adaptation a la Route pour Automobilistes Handicapes (CARA) (a driving rehabilitation centre for disabled motorists) for a first assessment of their driving potential. Group A included people who never had a driving licence before coming. Group B included people with a driving licence presenting sequellae of an accident or disease that could preclude their driving performances. Both groups have been divided into two sub-groups, the brain-damaged and non-brain-damaged people. In 1991, one year and two months on average after their registration at the centre, they were asked to answer a questionnaire. Regardless of the CARA opinion about their driving ability, individuals of Group A were asked if they had obtained their driving licence and individuals of Group B were asked if they were driving again. A second questionnaire, sent to people for which the handicap origin had been clearly identified, was aimed at assessing the accident or disease impact on their licencing or driving again. Preliminary results tend to show that the opinion of the brain-damaged individuals differed from that of non-brain-damaged as related to licencing and driving again.