The Bois Guillaume physical medicine and rehabilitation center made the observation of a difficulty for their patients to resume driving.
There are two types of problems, people with physical disabilities and those in difficulty for neurological problems, which can have a whole host of causes: ACV, chemotherapy, tumors, head trauma...
For the first, the vehicle must be adapted to their body. For the latter, it’s about getting used to driving again and sometimes, quite simply, knowing if they’ll be able to drive again one day. You should also know that for many it is quite simply a legal obligation to have a medical examination before resuming driving (especially in certain cases of head trauma).
Doctor Agnès Molina, doctor in physical rehabilitation medicine at the Herbaria Center, has sometimes observed this: some people went directly to driving schools which gave lessons to people who could never get back behind the wheel for physiological reasons. And patients could therefore pay for very many hours at a loss.
Simplify access to driving
So for simplify access to driving, the center offers its patients, but also people not treated at the center, a two-step program:
– first of all an evaluation session at 36 euros to test their abilities and ensure they are fit to drive: they are received by doctors, neurologists, carry out tests on simulatorss. After which they have a first opinion, which allows them, if they are fit to drive (this is mostly the case), to move on to the second stage…
– climb aboard the famous car, for a first session with a driving instructor and an occupational therapist, in charge of proposing, if necessary, adaptations to the driving position.
Tools adapted for physical disabilities
It’s an ordinary driving school car in appearance, but ultra-equipped inside.
Occupational therapists have at their disposal a wide range of tools to enable people with physical disabilities to drive.
There are already the steering wheel ballsattached to one side of the steering wheel, which allow the steering wheel to be held with one hand and a whole host of functions to be operated from this small lever: windshield wipers, indicators, horn… A tool widely used by the truckers.
There are also levers fixed on the right or on the left, under the steering wheel, which look like motorcycle handles: if you press it, you accelerate, if you lower it, you brake… And that allows you to drive without your feet !
Nathalie Martinez is an occupational therapist, she often notices great stress for the first session: “there is often very strong issues, personal first… especially for those who live in the countryside and who need to move around. Sometimes their spouse doesn’t have the license either. And then professionals, that is undeniable. So these people must both overcome their disability__, and in addition there are these issues behind, which explains their stress.”
Regain driving confidence
Floriane is 38 years old, following a head trauma, she was prohibited from driving without medical follow-up. Thanks to the program, she was able to complete a first hour with her occupational therapist and a driving instructor, free of charge, in the car at Les Herbiers. She has gained confidence during the session, and then passed an examination with an inspector from the prefecture. Who authorized her to renew … with congratulations, rejoices Floriane “I was able to talk to him during the whole session… Talking and driving, doing two things at the same time“!
At the end of these two stages, the test and then the driving session, patients can go back to driving schools with peace of mind to continue their rehabilitation : they now have either the appropriate tools (in the case of physical handicaps), or a medical opinion of aptitude to drive… which makes it possible not to pay for lessons at a loss in driving schools.
The car was financed by two associations, SIMAID and Comète.