COMMUNITY INTEGRATION OF WHEELCHAIR-BOUND ATHLETES - A COMPARISON BEFORE AND AFTER ONSET OF DISABILITY

Objectives: (1) To assess to what extent wheelchair-bound athletes liv ing independently in the community were able to return to their premor bid level of functioning in the community; (2) to investigate how they value their current way of functioning in comparison to that before d isability; and (3) to examine the factors that hamper their return to their premorbid life in four domains. Methods: Forty-four wheelchair-b ound athletes participated in this study. Data were collected by means of a self-administered semi-structured questionnaire which was divide d into four domains: vocational status, leisure time activities, socia l functioning and relationship with partner. Results: Return to premor bid level of functioning in the community in the long term was reasona bly well achieved for the domains 'leisure activities', 'social contac ts' and 'relationship with partners', but not for 'vocational situatio n'. Between 60% and 80% of the participants reported satisfaction with their current level of functioning for all domains. However, about 50 % of the respondents reported that they were currently less satisfied with their functioning on the domains 'vocational situation' and 'leis ure activities', compared to before the onset of disability. Factors l imiting integration were principally access to buildings and physical health problems (pain and fatigue). Conclusion: It appeared that wheel chair-bound athletes were able to live a life on a level comparable to that before onset of disability for three of the four domains. It was emphasized that pain treatment in late rehabilitation and improving a ccess for the disabled can contribute to the further integration of wh eelchair-bound people into the community.