What does virtually unable to walk actually mean?

sjm-54321

I'm sorry if this has already been asked.

Anyway, what does it actually mean? Say if you are chronically in pain after one footstep but managed to walk

say

100 yard...would that be seen as virtually unable to walk?

nannytone_2

it would depend. if it took 30 minutes to walk that far, then possibly. if you had to make frequent stops because of severe pain/shortness of breath then possibly.

jetta_wales

They also account for 'can not walk without severe discomfort"

starchild1972

They also account for the act of walking causing deterioration of health within a reasonable length of time taking other problems into consideration. (e.g. suffering ME/CFS/MS relapse, heart palpitations, epileptic seizure, POTS, severe fatigue, dizziness or pain)

dmg24

http://dwp.gov.uk/docs/dmgch61.pdf

MrsManda

[FONT=&quot]The definitions in the Decision Makers guidance for DLA says:

Virtually unable to walk means unable to walk to any appreciable extent or practically unable to walk. The base point is a total inability to walk. It is extended to take in people who can technically walk but only to an insignificant extent.

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[FONT=&quot]People are considered to be unable or virtually unable to walk if their physical condition is such that [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]1. they are unable to walk or [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]2. their ability to walk out of doors is so limited when considering [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]2.1 the distance over which or [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]2.2 the speed at which or [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]2.3 the length of time for which or [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]2.4 the manner in which [/FONT][FONT=&quot]they can make progress on foot without severe discomfort, they are virtually unable to walk or [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]3. the effort needed to walk would put their life at risk or be likely to lead to a serious deterioration in their health3. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The DM should not take account of where people live or the nature of their work.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/dmgch61.pdf - opens into a pdf[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]or download it from here: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-guides/decision-makers-guide/#vol10[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]There are some example situations in the guidance. If you download the document and search for 61316 and 61276 you'll get to the sections where I have taken the quotes above.
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bertiebat

The benefitsnow website has a good explanation on this:

http://www.benefitsnow.co.uk/dlanotes/virtullyunable.asp

Richie-from-the-Boro

I'll take a shot at answering that but I'm new to this, so I'm happy to be proven wrong !

Virtually unable means "unable to walk to any appreciable extent or practically unable to walk" Walking should be judged in relation to a type of surface normally expected out of doors, such as pavements and roads on level ground. The ability to walk on hills etc. is irrelevant but consideration of kerbs are part of the test.

- someone who could walk 400 yards but who then had to wait for two hours before walking another 400 yards was virtually unable to walk
- is the assessment the extent of the persons walking ability taking account any medication that is normally and reasonably used to "reduce, avoid or postpone the onset of discomfort"
- someone walking 50 yards in five minutes would be too slow and therefore virtually unable to walk
- severe discomfort has to be brought on by the act of walking and not by any other cause
- discomfort does not necessarily become severe at the point at which the claimant is forced to stop walking. He or she may be in severe discomfort whilst walking
- severe discomfort being a lower concomitant of severe pain; doesn't mean "excruciating agony" and severe discomfort includes pain, fatigue and unease of all kind
- someone in pain may not be suffering severe discomfort but someone may suffer severe discomfort without pain e.g. breathlessness
- if someone needs physical support from someone else in order to walk and the need arises from physical causes, the person would be virtually unable to walk if the support was withdrawn

So it seems to me that virtually is all about how long someone needs to stop and rest before continuing as well as the nature of the discomfort that led to his / her needing to stop in a case where a person could walk 50 yards but stopped once during that distance.