Dr. Cara McDonagh:

I mentioned in my statement that one can lose part or all of one's upper limbs and not qualify. A person missing an upper limb cannot drive a standard vehicle, for instance. Somebody who is walking but has weakness on one side and therefore needs adaptations to the vehicle, such as hand controls, generally does not qualify. Sometimes with children it is extremely difficult because they may be at the age where they should walk, developmentally, at two or three, but are not walking. They may start to walk so it is difficult. Parents are trying to prove their child will not walk. No parent wants to try to convince a doctor that their child will not walk. They spend most of their time doing the opposite.

The other difficult category is children with autism spectrum disorder and many behavioural problems. All they really need may be a special seat for their car or a bigger vehicle. They are not asking for all the scheme can provide but that is all there is. There is just a scheme that provides a large financial benefit when maybe they would be happy with a grant towards a vehicle or a special seat. It is difficult to bring a child into a room with three strange doctors and try, in front of the child, to talk of the difficulties they have in transportation. That should not be the way.

Nowadays we look at disability in terms of function rather than in terms of pathology, whether autism, epilepsy or stroke. We ask what the person can do and that is how we should assess people. We should ask what their level of function is and what they need in the vehicle, and they should qualify on that basis.