DETS provides driving assessment, counselling, and training for young adults, adults and seniors who have a wide variety of disabilities or health conditions.

Referring Providers:  Visit the Alberta Referral Directory for Driver Evaluation & Training Service.

Service Details/Contact | For Your Appointment | Parking Information | Finding Us | What to Expect | Patient Resources

Service Details / Contact

View the following service listing to access a service overview, eligibility criteria, hours of operation, contact information and a street map.

• Driver Evaluation & Training Service

Back to Top

For Your Appointment

What to bring:

• Your Alberta Health Care card and a piece of photo ID. 
• Any hearing aids or eyeglasses that you may need.
• A list of your current medications can be helpful if they have recently changed.

Back to Top

Parking Information

Parking at the site is limited. Plan to give yourself enough time to arrive at your appointment. There is a cost for parking. Refer to the parking map for rates.

• Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital Parking Map

Back to Top

Finding Us

From the main entrance of the Glenrose, turn left at patient registration and walk towards the elevator core. Take the elevator to the second floor (2) Floor. Check-in with the receptionist at the OT/PT reception desk.

Back to Top

What to Expect

The DETS program assessment consists of two parts to be considered complete.

Part 1

An in-house evaluation, which happens in the hospital and looks at the main skills that are required to be safe while driving.

Part 2

Takes place in one of the program vehicles and looks at on-road safety as it relates to your condition.
An Occupational Therapist will complete the in-house evaluation. Core skills that will be assessed include:

• Physical - skills such as strength, range of motion, and coordination.
• Vision - skills such as visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and peripheral vision.
• Thinking Skills - skills such as processing speed, divided attention, and perception.

In some instances, a person may have challenges with the in-house evaluation that may prevent them from moving forward with the second part of the assessment. This is most commonly due to safety concerns and could also be to recommend therapy options before moving on to the on-road assessment to become successful.

If safe to do so, the second part of the assessment is an on-road evaluation done by both an Occupational Therapist and a Certified Driver Instructor in one of our program vehicles (equipped with an instructor's brake for safety and for insurance purposes). The on-road assessment includes:

• A pre-determined route designed to challenge core driving skills required by a Class 5 licensed driver.
• The route may be modified to challenge and practice specific areas identified during in-house evaluation.
• The route begins in a quiet residential area and progresses to busier streets if/when appropriate.

After both parts of the testing are complete, the DETS team meets with the client to discuss results and recommendations face to face. A report is generated after the assessment and recommendations are shared with the referring doctor as well as Driver Fitness and Monitoring. Driver Fitness and Monitoring make the final decision on all return to driving situations.

Vehicles & Equipment Used

Mid-sized sedan car with:

• automatic transmission
• hand controls
• steering modifications
• signal extender
• left foot accelerator

Mini van with:

• automatic transmission
• VMI Northstar with lowered floor and van conversion package.

Equipment that can be trialed in our vehicles includes:

• hand controls
• steering modifications
• signal extender
• variable effort steering
• digital control of all vehicle functions (ignition, signals, wipers, horn, etc.)

Back to Top

Patient Resources

• Alberta Driver Medical Fitness Review

Back to Top