Integrating technology in the workplace for people with spinal cord injury

Computer technology can overcome mobility and functional limitations resulting from spinal cord injury (SCI) and enable re-employment. This study aimed to identify barriers and supports to effective technology use at work from the unique perspectives of technology users themselves. A qualitative research design was used to explore the perspectives of 11 technology users with SCI. In-depth, open-ended interviews and observations were conducted at each person’s workplace. Five major themes emerged: identifying the best or right technology; acquiring the technology; customizing and learning to use the technology; supporting the technology; and empowerment. Understanding these consumer perspectives enables professionals to empower people with SCI to optimize their work potential

Motivations and incentives: exploring assistive technology service delivery from the perspectives of multiple stakeholders

Knowledge and ideas about disability and Assistive Technology (AT) shape society’s construction, funding and delivery of AT services. Concepts such as individualism and objectivity have supported the progression of AT device design and the measurement of AT outcomes. Dominant ideas, however, may suppress other conceptions that offer alternative approaches to, and therefore outcomes of AT service delivery. This paper analyses AT service delivery from the perspectives of key stakeholders, utilizing reflective strategies informed by situational analysis and a pluralistic approach. The complexity of AT service delivery is de-constructed by describing experiences and validating the perceptions of AT users, practitioners and funding schemes, and then identifying the implicit and explicit influences on their actions. It explores the multiple and differing ideas about disability and AT, and discusses these in the context of current policies and systems. It challenges readers to recognize the dominant ideas shaping practice, and consider alternative approaches in an attempt to refine AT service delivery

Capturing the True Value of Assistive Technologies to Consumers in Routine Outcome Measurement

(1) Background: Recent reforms in Australia, providing people with disability and older people with choice and control over allocated funding, have altered consumer expectations and transformed the landscape of assistive technology (AT) service provision. The purpose of this study is to report on the routine AT outcomes of people who accessed an AT consultation service and examine how well these capture the impact of AT on their lives; (2) Methods: This study, which uses mixed methods for concurrent triangulation of the data, reports on the outcomes for 127 people who acquired a range of assistive technology in 2015 and examines the adequacy of an existing service outcome framework in capturing the true value of these technologies to AT users. Outcome data was routinely collected by a community service 2–4 months following an AT consultation. A telephone or face-to-face interview gathered demographic information as well as AT outcomes, using two standardized tools, the Individualized Prioritised Problem Assessment (IPPA) and the EATS 6D. Qualitative comments relating to the impact of the AT on the person’s life were also documented; (3) Results: The acquired AT generally met or exceeded expectations of the person using the AT and the attending health professional. Overall, people experienced decreased difficulty and increased feelings of autonomy, with most of the reported improvements identified in mobility and usual activities; (4) Conclusion: Routine outcome data provide some evidence of the value of AT in addressing concerns as identified by clients. Qualitative data, which captured the impact of AT on people’s lives, suggest that the empowering and transformative aspects of AT are not currently being captured by existing measures

Economics of inclusiveness: Can we as a society afford not to provide assistive technology and use universal design?

We investigate the potential of the ICF to examine the social costs of not providing effective assistive technology (AT) interventions and of not applying universal design (UD) principles when developing products and services. The ICF provides a structure to evaluate the costs of providing environmental facilitators and reducing environmental barriers for AT users, and considering the resulting increase in activities and participation. Considering UD together with AT provides a societal perspective grounded in users’ experiences