Seating & Positioning Clinic

DDA operates three seating and positioning clinics in Tennessee, located in Arlington, Nashville, and Greeneville. Mobile on-site services are available in East and West Tennessee.

Physical and occupational therapists with specialized expertise in evaluating complex seating and positioning needs provide comprehensive evaluations and support to prioritize needs. Each clinic has an associated manufacturing shop where staff with extensive experience e in the areas of construction, carpentry, upholstering, and electronics, fabricate equipment to meet individualized needs.

For more information and to learn about the benefits of seating and positioning, download our brochure.


  • Evaluation and simulation of seating and alternate positioning needs
  • Modifications to current systems
  • Custom manufacturing of molded seating systems
  • Design and manufacturing of alternate positioning equipment
  • Customization of commercial adaptive equipment
  • Power wheelchair assessment, trial and training
  • Integration of augmentative alternative communication (AAC) systems with seating and positioning
  • Continuing education and training

Custom seating and alternate positioning:

  • Improved mobility and independence
  • Improved posture and trunk stability
  • Improved protection of skin integrity
  • Improved functionImproved comfort
  • Improved respirationImproved digestion
  • Increased relaxation of muscle spasticity leading to improved function
  • Decreased progression of orthopedic deformities
  • Decreased risks associated with gastro esophageal reflux and aspiration

Referrals: 

The following forms are required for new referrals to any of the Seating and Positioning Clinics. Please contact the clinic with any questions. Thank you!

Referrals for an evaluation:

Referrals for a repair of equipment fabricated by the Seating and Positioning Clinic:

When a piece of equipment is delivered through our clinic, we issue a competency form that explains how to help a person into the equipment, how to clean it and who to contact for repairs. Please review this form and maintain it for reference.

When components of the wheelchair or alternative positioning equipment manufactured by DDA are in need of repair, the following form should be completed and sent to the clinic.

Referrals for commerical equipment or wheelchair frames:
When commercial wheelchair equipment needs repairs (frame, headrest, brakes, wheels, etc.), the durable medical equipment (DME) vendor must be contacted first. . f problems are encountered that are difficult to resolve, individuals can contact the clinic for guidance.
 

Other Resources:


Who is eligible?

The Seating and Positioning Clinics specialize in serving Tennesseans with intellectual and developmental disabilities and others who have complex seating and/or positioning needs.

We take the following insurances:

  • Medicare, Part B
  • Medicaid
  • Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee: BlueCare, TennSelect, and CoverKids
  • Amerigroup/Wellpoint
  • United Health Care/Optum
  • TriCare, Standard only
  • Aetna
  • Humana

Please contact your nearest clinic if you have questions about specific insurance plan coverage.

Our hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8:00a to 4:30p (local time).
Please note that we observe all state holidays.

With clinics in each of the three grand divisions of Tennessee, DDA has seating and positioning services relatively close to anyone who needs them, but in some areas of the state, especially in east Tennessee, the drive to get to a clinic in Greeneville or Nashville is often more than two hours.  Spending this amount of time on the road to and from a clinic can put a strain on a person's already stressed body.  For this reason, the mobile clinic currently operates primarily in the East region.

Through the bidding and procurement process, DDA worked with Nomad GCS to meet the specifications and unique requirements of a mobile seating and positioning clinic.  The clinic is essentially a module that rides on a standard 3-axle CDL Class B chassis.  Inside the clinic, there are 2 main areas: a production area and a clinic area.

The clinic area is the more spacious of the two zones.  It includes an articulated wheelchair lift that extends out of the back of the rig and down to the ground to lift people and equipment into the clinic.  The clinic area also includes a ceiling lift to help people in and out of their equipment, a mat table for use during appointments, mounting rails to secure equipment during transport, desk space for the clinician to use during and after appointments, and a small sink.

The production area includes a band saw, an in-floor equipment lift, a work bench, and storage for tools, materials and equipment.  It also has a pocket door so the area can be closed off for privacy or noise reasons.

Throughout the mobile clinic, there are three A/C and heating units with individual thermostats to keep the temperature comfortable and switchable LED lights.  The mobile clinic also has an extremely powerful generator to ensure that its equipment can function in any environment.

The Seating and Positioning Mobile Clinic is capable of providing comprehensive wheelchair seating and therapeutic positioning evaluations, planar and custom molded seating simulation, seating system fittings, minor wheelchair maintenance, and possibly alternative positioning simulation and fittings.

The dimensions of the clinic are 43 feet long, 9.5 feet wide, and 13.7 feet high.  The wheelchair lift on the back requires an additional 10 feet of space in length to operate and allow for loading and unloading for a total length requirement of 53 feet.  There is also a side door with stairs and a retractable awning that can be used to provide protection from the elements.  In order to use the clinic safely, we require adequate access and level parking.  If you believe that it will be difficult to gain access to your facility or home, including challenging local roads, please call us so we can determine if there are other routes we can take or options for parking.  If it is determined that a location is not accessible, we will work to make alternative arrangements. 

The smaller size of the mobile clinic and the need to transport multiple pieces of equipment within the mobile unit, may limit the services we are able to provide.  This may necessitate travel to the clinic in Greeneville for some appointments.  The mobile clinic is not designed to provide emergency care, repairs, recovering equipment, modifications to bathing equipment, or sewing large pieces of equipment.

Scheduling will be completed by the East Clinic secretary on a weekly basis.  Prioritization will include: patients confined to the home, groups of two or more individuals, locations more than two hours from the clinic.  The clinic will make plans to travel to various pre-arranged hubs throughout the region in order to provide services to multiple individuals from the surrounding areas in one day in order to maximize efficiency.  Scheduling for these sites will be coordinated with host agencies.

Contact Us

Our hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8:00a to 4:30p (local time).
Please note that we observe all state holidays.

West TN Seating and Positioning Clinic
WTRC.Seating.Positioning@tn.gov​
901-745-7509

Middle TN Seating and Positioning Clinic 
MTRC.Referrals@tn.gov​
615-231-5147

East TN Seating and Positioning Clinic
ETRC.Referrals@tn.gov
423-787-6689

Toni Marcum,
Seating and Positioning Clinics Operational Director
Toni.Marcum@tn.gov
629-292-8359


Directions to Clinics

The West Clinic is located at 11437 Oak Crest Drive, Arlington, TN 38002, which is also the address for the DDA West Regional Office.  From the Jackson area, take exit 24-25 onto TN-205 toward Arlington from I-40.  Keep right toward Arlington. At the end of the ramp, turn right onto Airline Rd.  At the first red light, turn left on Milton Wilson Dr.  After traveling about a mile, you will see the entrance for the Department of Disability and Aging campus.  Turn left into the entrance and continue straight.  After you pass the main building, turn right.  There is accessible parking located up a ramp between the B and C parking lot signs, and also in parking lot D, where you can enter the lower level of the clinic through the tunnel. Visitors can park in the gravel lot across from the building, walk up the ramp to the sliding doors and ring the buzzer. From the Memphis area, take exit 25 (Arlington, Collierville, Millington) from I-40.  At the end of the ramp, turn left on Airline Rd.  At the first red light, turn left on Milton Wilson Rd. Follow the above directions.

The Middle Clinic is located at 301 Stewarts Ferry Pike, Nashville, TN 37214, which is also the address for the DDA Middle Regional Office.  From Nashville and the west, take exit 219 (Stewarts Ferry Pike) off I-40 and turn left.  Proceed for about a mile, and you will see the Department of Disability and Aging campus on your right.  Turn right into the entrance and proceed straight up the hill, following the signs for the Assistive Technology Clinic.  After you crest the hill, take a right onto Franklin Way. The clinic will be immediately on your left.  Go through the first parking lot and turn left at the end of the building and you will find accessible parking and the main clinic entrance.From east of Nashville, take exit 219 (Stewarts Ferry Pike) off I-40 and turn right.  Follow the above directions.

The East Clinic is located at 4850 East Andrew Johnson Hwy, Afton, TN 37616, which is also the address for the DDA East Regional Office, on the former Greene Valley campus.  When mapping this address, it may tell you to turn right from HWY 11E onto Erwin Hwy. Instead, continue straight on 11E until you pass the Walmart on your left. Continue straight through the stoplight at the intersection of HWY11E and 107E. Take the second right after this stoplight which is the main entrance to the Department of Disability and Aging campus. Continue straight on Main Street to the back of the campus.  Follow Main Street as it makes a left turn and go right at the third stop sign.  The clinic will be immediately on your right. Park and enter at the double doors by the gazebo.Coming from Johnson City, traveling on West Market Street/US-11E S: From the intersection of North State of Franklin Rd and West Market Street travel 4.8 miles to the intersection in Jonesborough (see McDonald’s on the right). Go through this intersection staying on US-11E S, and travel 17.8 miles and turn left into the campus entrance.  If you get to intersection of US-11E S and East 107 you have gone too far. Once you turn onto campus, follow the above directions.