Lee Kirby, MD, FRCPC Professor, Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University (cross appointments in Kinesiology and Biomedical Engineering) Website | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it | Publications Tel: (902) 494-3427

Research

Wheelchair skills for better mobility

Physiatrist Dr. Lee Kirby focuses on wheelchair safety, performance and skills training to improve the mobility of people living with spinal cord injury, amputation, stroke-related paralysis, and other conditions affecting their ability to walk. He and his colleagues have developed a wheelchair skills training program to help people learn to safely navigate over and around obstacles that would otherwise confine them. This program has been translated into French and implemented in various parts of the world.

Dr. Kirby is involved in several team projects together holding more than $6 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, NSERC, and the U.S. Department of Education and Department of Health and Human Services. These projects are:

• investigating wheeled mobility for older adults
• training young investigators in biomedical device innovation
• examining ways to enhance indoor, community and advanced wheelchair skills training for people with spinal cord injury.

As a member of the Mobility Project, Dr. Kirby collaborates locally with a variety of academic and clinical rehabilitation professionals.

Academic background

Dr. Kirby studied medicine at Dalhousie University and, after receiving his MD, went on to residency training in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Washington, Dalhousie University, and the Stoke Mandeville Hospital in England. He returned to Canada and accepted a faculty position at Dalhousie University in 1976. Over the years Dr. Kirby has earned many awards and distinctions for his contributions to helping people with disabilities become more mobile.

Selected Publications

Kirby RL, *Adams CD, *MacPhee AH, *Coolen AL, Harrison ER, Eskes GA, Smith C, MacLeod DA and Dupuis DJ. Wheelchair-skill performance: controlled comparison between people with hemiplegia and able-bodied people simulating hemiplegia. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2005;86:387-93.

*Best KL, Kirby RL, Smith C, MacLeod DA. Wheelchair skills training for community-based manual wheelchair users: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2005;86:2316-23.

Kirby RL, Smith C, Seaman R, Macleod DA, Parker K. The manual wheelchair wheelie: a review of our current understanding of an important motor skill. Disability & Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 2006:1:119-127.

*Koshi EB, Kirby RL, MacLeod DA, Kozey JW, Thompson KJ, Parker KE. The effect of rolling resistance on stationary wheelchair wheelies. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2006;85:899-907.

Kirby RL, *Gillis J, *Boudreau AL, Smith C, Rushton P, Clark-Gallant L, Parker KE, Webber A. Effect of a high rolling-resistance training method on the success rate and time required to learn the wheelchair wheelie skill: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2008;87:204-11.

Kirby RL, *Corkum CG, Smith C, Rushton P, MacLeod DA, Webber A. Comparing performance of manual wheelchair skills using new and conventional rear anti-tip devices: randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2008;89:480-5.

Kirby RL, Bennett S, Smith C, Parker K, Thompson K. Wheelchair curb climbing: randomized controlled comparison of highly structured and conventional training methods. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2008;89:2342-8.

Kirby RL, *Walker R, Smith C, Best K, MacLeod DA, Thompson K. Manual wheelchair-handling skills by caregivers using new and conventional rear anti-tip devices: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2009;90:1680-4.

*Mountain AD, Smith C, Kirby RL. Are wheelchair-skills assessment and training relevant for long-standing wheelchair users? two case reports. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 2010;5:230-233.

*Mountain AD, Kirby RL, Eskes GA, Smith C, Duncan H, MacLeod DA, Thompson K. Ability of people with stroke to learn powered wheelchair skills: a pilot study. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2010;91:596-601.

*Mountain AD, Kirby RL, MacLeod DA, Thompson K. Rates of manual and powered wheelchair use for persons with stroke: a retrospective study in a Canadian rehabilitation center. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2010;91:639-43.

Kirby RL, *Heimrath O, *Stewart A, Smith C, MacLeod DA. Effect of respiration on the static rear stability of wheelchairs. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2010;91:947-50.

Nelson AL, Groer S, Palacios P, Mitchell D, Sabharwal S, Kirby RL, Gavin-Dreschnack D, Powell-Cope G. Wheelchair-related falls in persons with spinal cord injury residing in the community: a prospective cohort study. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2010;91:1166-73.