Abstract

Background/Objectives: Children with severe physical and communication disabilities face many challenges. They have very limited opportunities for upright, hands-free, self-initiated mobility. Current findings in neuroscience and theories on child development suggest that self-initiated mobility can have positive cascading effects on various developmental areas, including language and communication. This study was conducted to examine the current use of hands-free support walkers with children who have severe physical and communication disabilities and use augmentative and alternative communication and to identify the benefits and problems perceived by their parents and professionals from different disciplines.

Methods: Online surveys were utilized to collect information from 127 participants, including 31 parents and 96 professionals or paraprofessionals.

Results: The participants reported that these children could perform various motor activities in the hands-free support walkers to achieve different goals. Benefits identified by both parents and professionals included providing a way to exercise and stay active, improving motor control, enhancing independence, and bringing enjoyment. Professionals also observed positive impacts on communication, vocalization, use of eye contact, and problem solving.

Conclusions: Results suggest that children with severe physical and communication disabilities can benefit from the upright, hands-free, self-initiated mobility provided by hands-free support walkers. Clinical implications and needs for future research are discussed.