Consumer Education

• Consumer Resource Handbook
  • Part I, "Buying Smart," contains general advice on steps to take when shopping for goods or services, warnings on what to watch out for, and specific information on how to shop for certain major items such as cars, credit and home improvements. Part I also offers suggestions on how to complain effectively when problems arise after a purchase is made. A sample complaint letter is included.
  • Part II, "Consumer Assistance Directory," lists offices you can contact for help. This section provides individual names, addresses, telephone numbers, TDD/TTY and fax numbers, e-mail addresses, and web sites for contacts in consumer organizations, corporations, trade associations, and government agencies at the city, county, state and Federal level.
• National Institute for Consumer Education

Educate Yourself About Wheeled Mobility

Books

• A Guide to Wheelchair Selection: How to Use the ANSI/RESNA Wheelchair Standards to Buy a Wheelchair.
• The Manual Wheelchair Training Guide, a guide to understanding and using manual wheelchairs by Axelson, Chesney, Minkel & Perr.
• The Powered Wheelchair Training Guide a guide to understanding and using powered wheelchair by Peter Axelson, Jean Minkel, Anita Perr and Denise Yamada.
• Wheelchair Selection and Training: Teaching and Guiding Practitioners and Consumers - a book review of 5 books on wheelchairs by Brian Dudgeon.

Expos and Shows

• Abilities Expo - New York, Chicago, Washington, DC, New England, Southern CA, and Northern, CA.
• Assistive Technology Industry Association
• World Congress and Exposition on Disabilities

WheelchairNet

• Prioritizing and Making Decisions about Wheelchairs
• Team Rehab Reports - past articles with interesting topics taken from this easy-to-read magazine are scanned and archived on WheelchairNet.
• What does it mean if your rehabilitation professional has Certification in Assistive Technology?
• WheelchairNet's resources for seating and mobility for clients and consumers.
• Slide Lecture Series on Application and Use of Wheeled Mobility Technology
• Find out about other education and research possibilities at Wheelchair University!
• Wheelchair and Seating Standards Development

Research and Development

• Disability and rehabilitation research projects supported by the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
• Read WheelchairNet's introduction to the MEDLINE databases called PubMed and MEDLINEplus. Learn to do do your own search of the peer-reviewed literature.
• New Scientist - research on thought-communication devices.
• The Proceedings of the Stakeholder's Forum - May 25 & 26,1999, Pittsburgh, PA.
• The Proceedings of the State of the Science Forum - February 19 & 20, Orlando, FL.

Last Updated: 3-2-2006