Dubbo: Week 3;2

So where was I up to?
I think I have a whole week to report on.

A very full-on, busy week.

Spinal seating clinic this week run by some people from Sydney. Looking at seating and positioning for spinal cord injury. Manual and powered wheelchairs. Very interesting. And good to see something different. Got to show off my vast experience in using hoists.

Thursday was another trip to Mudgee. 12 hour day. Left at 7am and got back just before 7pm.
4 home visits in the morning.
1 x scooter assessment. I got to carry out a Mini-Mental.
1 person who wanted a ramp and refused to let us look at the rest of the house.
1 gentleman who wanted a wheelchair for 'just in case'. Lovely man who I could have spent all day talking to.
Going back in a fortnight to trial the scooter and wheelchair. Will be interesting to see the PADP/Enable application writing process.
Saw one person who told us how smoking pot helps relax his spasms and that he was working on a way to put the oil into capsules because apparently if you swallow it, you get the relaxing properties but not the high, and it doesn't hurt your brain. Go figure.

Afternoon was delivering the wheelchairs, fitting them properly and teaching the users how to operate them. Was amusing watching people hit the wrong controls and sometimes frustrating at the time it took for them to get the hang of it. But it was very satisfying to see how happy they were to get their new chairs.
The 3rd wheelchair we delivered was a different story. The wheelchair delivery man had gone ahead of us and when we got there we found quite a scene. For starters there was no one at the house, when we were assured they would be there. Second... it had been raining and pouring for the past 48 hours and we were on a property so everything was muddy and slippery. Steve had walked over the mud to make sure it was solid enough to drive the wheelchair over and had no problems. Then drove the wheelchair into the mud where it became bogged. And I mean seriously stuck. Brand new wheelchair. Now stuck and muddy. Steve had to find some planks of wood to put under the tyres and do a lot of lifting to get it out. When it was eventually free, it got a hosing and a note was left for the recipient.
It was entertaining.

Friday I got to start writing reports for the 3 new people we saw, and I will continue to do so during the week.

I'm now totally awesome at using the phone. If I'm not sure about anything I just say that I'm a student and everyone apologises for bothering me!!

Halfway evaluation this week!
I can't believe it's half over, but I also can't believe I stil have 4 weeks to go... weird.