Vehicle modification prescription for drivers with disabilities: development of consensus based prescription guidelines to optimise user interfaces and safety

Vehicle modifications (VMs) may be essential to ensure drivers with disabilities can access and drive motor vehicles independently and safely: safer driver-vehicle interfaces are an imporant contributor to meeting the goals of ”Toward Zero” for this driver group. Occupational therapy driver assessors (OTDAs) routinely prescribe vehicle modifications based on individualised assessments. Following stakeholder consultation, safe systems and human factors analysis and a literature review, we identified resource gaps in information to support a licensing authority approved, and evidence based, VMs prescription process. Using an action research approach, we established content validity for items and developed consensus-based draft VMs prescription guidelines ready for trialling by OTDAs.