Hong Kong man devotes himself to customizing wheelchairs so disabled people have proper seating

From CNN Go:

Gordon Wong (pictured) works amid towering piles of wheelchair frames and parts. The phone in his receptionist's cozy cubicle rings loudly and often.

As the founder of Licon Rehab, a private company he founded Wong oversees the repair of old wheelchairs as well as the creation of custom-built wheelchairs and their parts. The company occupies a long and narrow office space tucked deep inside a fortress-like industrial building in Cheung Sha Wan. His mussed-up hair and loose-hanging t-shirt suggest a man unconcerned with outward appearance. But it all makes sense coming from someone whose life passion focuses on function and need.

"I'm not interested in making money just by selling something common and cheap," explains Wong, who left a trading company in 1999 to establish Licon. A Kowloon native, Wong had previously dealt in health diagnostic instruments like blood pressure monitors. His leap into the wheelchair business began when he noticed wheelchair users from abroad had better wheelchairs than people from Hong Kong. Soon, the man who loves building things found a perfect niche: customizing wheelchairs for a market that seldom had seen apparatus of high quality. "I thought: 'Why don't I help people in wheelchairs?'"

So he resolved to learn as much as possible about wheelchairs, asking "thousands of questions" of the manufacturers he encountered. In 1999, Wong organized an unprecedented three-day conference at the Convention and Exhibition Centre, attended by over 80 occupational therapists from Hong Kong. Bengt Engstrom, an influential physiotherapist and author on ergonomic seating from Sweden, was the featured speaker. Wong says the reaction was overwhelming. "We showed therapists that when you do some minor improvements you can make a big difference. People were amazed, very positive."

Since then, Wong estimates that he has done business with every hospital, rehab center, and school for the disabled in Hong Kong as well as the majority of the city’s nursing homes for the elderly. Despite his wide reach, he expresses frustration with local knowledge about proper wheelchair use.

"Most people don’t realize the importance of correct seating posture," he says. "Wheelchair seating is not a big issue in the Hospital Authority because it doesn’t kill anybody. But it affects your breathing, your appetite, your sleeping."

Users typically learn about Licon Rehab when referred by a therapist in the course of their treatment. Wong consults directly with the therapist to learn about the nature of the disability, the wheelchair’s intended use, and the age of the user.

When he constructs wheelchairs, Wong draws upon the head supports and body cushions supplied by manufacturers in Europe and America, mixing and matching parts to suit the user. Such adaptation is critical, he says. "It's completely different if they're using it just for dining compared to transport."

His wheelchair prices range from HK$600 to HK$40,000. It’s a wide spectrum because some self-propel with the latest technology. "The most basic requirements are correct sizes in width, depth, height, and also the height and angles of the back."

Wong acknowledges that the high costs associated with wheelchair ownership can pose challenges for users, but he says therapists can help families find funding schemes through the Social Welfare Department.

Whether it's an adult recovering from a vehicular accident or a child learning to live with muscular dystrophy, Wong says the well-being of the wheelchair user inspires him to source the best materials possible. "Some of them, when they are sitting quite well, they smile," says Wong softly. "That is life."