This article advocates the use of "quality of life" factors for assessing the success of policies whose aim is to improve the mobility of disabled people. The five broad health related quality of life concepts are listed as: "opportunity, perceptions, functional states, impairments and death or duration of life". Some of the main generic measures used to quantify these concepts are also listed and discussed briefly. There is a paucity of data for providing a profile of health related quality of life in persons with disabling conditions. The results of some studies are reviewed briefly. The study illustrates the value of assessing and monitoring quality of life over time. Mobility and other activities involving mobility such as community meetings, recreation and pastimes, and social gatherings can be reliably assessed.
Abstract