Oliver got a custom wheelchair seat
A new approach to wheelchair seating in Aalborg Municipality – part 2
Earlier this year, we initiated a project with Aalborg Municipality to explore the feasibility of integrating a digital workflow in collaboration with caretakers and professional seating experts—the individuals who are in daily contact with citizens and have intimate knowledge of them.
As you could read in the previous story of Thomas, the project takes a hands-on approach, bringing in external expertise from the RAS team in Germany to help digitalize local clinical know-how. Part of the project involved designing and testing seats for a group of citizens, evaluating their performance afterwards, and learning through trial and error.
Now it is time to meet Oliver.
An active young man
Oliver is a young man whose world is full of energy and curiosity. He recently moved into a shared home for people with disabilities, stepping into a new chapter of independence while still relying on the care and support of his devoted mother. Oliver thrives on music, turning up the volume and letting the rhythms energize him. He also loves the thrill of racing along the trails near his home. Yet, life isn’t without its hurdles. Although Oliver can walk a few steps with his walker, the wheelchair is his primary means of transportation, and he spends many hours in it every day. However, before he received his custom wheelchair seat, Oliver’s daily life looked very different.
Car rides, meant to be fun excursions with his new home’s vehicle, often left him in pain, keeping adventures on hold. Chronic neck pain was a daily companion, requiring careful massage and exercises whenever he visited his mother, while his knees sometimes ached painfully as the joints rubbed together. On top of this, Oliver managed persistent skin issues, which added another layer of difficulty to everyday life.
"When Oliver was seated in the new seat, it was just right. We could immediately see the difference"
Measurement and adjustment
His caretakers at the municipality selected him as a perfect candidate for testing the Programmable Foam® wheelchair seating, which features a custom-molded seat made specifically for him.
Oliver’s mother, Anette, recalls that they were initially a bit sceptical—was this solution too new and advanced? Still, they decided to give it a try. Oliver’s wheelchair was measured by the municipality’s seating expert, who also made his imprint in the vacuum bag. Following this, she scanned it, and Create it REAL’s experts assisted in converting it to a 3D model. The 3D model was adjusted, and the municipality’s seating expert helped implement harder and softer zones in the design to provide Oliver with relief and support where he needed it most.
From there, it was simply a matter of pressing “print” and waiting for the 3D printer to do its work.
Impressions on the new wheelchair seat
The new seat’s design—with built-in breathability and adjustable hardness in the abductor area and throughout the seat—has enabled Oliver to maintain a more upright posture. His mother explains: “When Oliver was seated in the new seat, it was just right. We could immediately see the difference.”
With the new cushion, Oliver can now go on more car trips, and when he visits his mother, Anette, they can spend more time enjoying “the fun” activities instead of focusing on neck care. Anette also feels more confident about Oliver being on his own at the shared home, knowing that he now sits more stably and is less likely to fall out of his wheelchair.
All skin issues have disappeared with the natural ventilation and pressure relief provided by the Programmable Foam® technology.
Experience gained
Although the process has not been completely flawless—as is natural in a trial-and-error approach—we have gained many valuable insights for both Aalborg Municipality and Create it REAL. We understand that it can be challenging to design custom seating that fits perfectly, and transferring to a digital process is still new. However, we also see an opportunity to put the right tools in the hands of professionals with the expertise to utilize them.
Most importantly, Oliver now has a new wheelchair seat that supports him every day, improving his quality of life, alleviating his skin issues and pain, and reducing the worries of those around him.
