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Q I am a 47-year-old with progressive MS and have a problem getting into bed. Once I am lying down I need a small adjustment of position to get comfortable: towards the centre of the bed or up the bed but never more than a few inches and always involving two carers. I have been in hospital many times and have received care at home for four years. During that time, nobody has ever expressed concern about moving me but the management is now reprimanding all its carers for not using slide sheets. I feel this is unfair. Whenever we have tried to use a slide sheet in the past it has proved unsuccessful. It makes me feel unsafe; it involves undignified rolling back and forth; my carers feel it is harder for them; it takes longer; and I still need adjusting when the sheet is removed. In short, slide sheets cause more problems than they solve, yet the management insists on their use and seems unconcerned about my objections. Let me emphasise that I would never expect my carers to do anything that might put them at risk or that they might feel uncomfortable with. I would very much appreciate your input on this matter. Do you think, as I do, that the council is failing to use its common sense?
Name supplied, via email

Douglas Joy: Health and safety matters in this context are largely governed by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 but manual lifting and handling in the workplace is governed by the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, which requires employers to assess the manual handling operations that need to be carried out in the workplace and then put in place appropriate steps to reduce the risk of injury. Your local Social Services Department is probably trying, perhaps overzealously, to comply with this legislation in introducing the rule regarding slide sheets, as well as attempting to fulfill its general duty to its employees to provide a safe working environment. Policies on things such as manual lifting in the workplace can constitute a breach of a person's human rights under the Human Rights Act 1998 (as happened in the case of R v East Sussex County Council ex parte A, B, X and Y [2003]) but usually only where applying the relevant general rule seriously infringes disabled people's ability to live their lives. The Court in R v East Sussex County Council also stated that local authorities must strike a balance between the human rights of disabled people and the rights of their employees and carers to a safe working environment. It is therefore unlikely that the local authority's policy in this case can be challenged on legal grounds.

Q Are there any devices that can be fitted to a car in cases where the driver suffers with impaired consciousness? I suffer with mild epilepsy and although the seizures are extremly brief, they are still active. I was wondering whether you had something that may be suitable for someone with a momentary loss of consciousness.
Paul Eyres, by email

Ed Passant: There are detailed medical rules relating to epilepsy and driving, the core of which stipulate that you must have been free from a seizure (with or without medication) for at least a year before you can apply, or re-apply, for a driving licence. If your seizures are still active while you are awake, this would appear to indicate that you would not be eligible to drive under current rules.

In terms of technological advances, there have been developments as a result of research into tiredness at the wheel. One system now marketed to fleet operators uses a range of sensors to detect when a driver’s eyes have closed for a period longer than a blink. This event, described as a “micro sleep”, sets off an audible alarm designed to wake the driver up immediately, but this is a long way from innovations designed to take over if you were incapacitated and I am not aware of any currently available devices that would really suit your needs at the moment.

Q I am a wheelchair-user and would like to travel to Florida next year. Is there any airline that can take me on board in my own Wheelchair? I am unable to be in any other position apart from the one my wheelchair is moulded to.
Emily Willis

Andy Wright: Unfortunately no airline will allow wheelchair users to remain in their chair while on board. This is more to do with passenger security and health and safety regulations rather than disability compliance. As far as the moulded seat is concerned, a number of airlines will provide certain types of moulded seat that can be used on board, although moulded seats are a very personalised and tailored item and this solution does not suit all. Some moulded seats can actually be removed from the wheelchair and some airlines will consider allowing these to be placed on the airline seat, which is another possibility. Naturally, it still very much depends on the type of moulded seat required and whether passengers can benefit from a moulded seat other than their own.

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