Author(s):  
Kathy de Domingo

Physical and occupational therapists commonly provide services that incorporate prosthetic and orthotic devices such as crutches, canes, reachers, and ankle–foot orthoses to support mobility and activities of daily living (ADLs). Likewise, speech-language pathologists provide services incorporating prosthetic devices to support communication such as an electrolarynx, microcomputers, and mobile devices and apps with voice output capability. Assistive technology for cognition (ATC) includes the use of personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, and smart phones — cognitive prostheses — to compensate for cognitive challenges following acquired brain injury (ABI). Whereas funding sources for devices and services that support/compensate for mobility, ADLs, and communication challenges are generally well established, funding for ATC devices and services is relatively new to the field of speech-language pathology. This article explores the funding aspect of ATC devices and services.


Author(s):  
Emily C. Bouck ◽  
Andrea Jasper ◽  
Laura Bassette ◽  
Jordan Shurr

Mobile phones are a prime example of an everyday technology that can be repurposed to be an assistive technology for an individual with a disability. In-and-of-themselves as well as through their capabilities to host applications (apps), mobile phones enhance the independence of individuals with disabilities in multiple functional areas, including – but not limited to – daily living skills, communication, and navigation within one's community. This article provides readers with the current literature and considerations for using mobile phones as repurposed assistive technology for individuals with disabilities with a focus on mobiles phones for promoting independence, for use as a prompting device, and for use as an AAC device. This article stresses the lack of existing research base, but the potential of mobile phones to improve the lives of individuals with disabilities.


2022 ◽  
pp. 707-736
Author(s):  
Isabel Cristina Siqueira da Silva ◽  
Luan Carlos Nesi ◽  
Viviane da Silva Machado

Ludic games and gamification processes can extend functional skills in players as they integrate different intelligences and stimulate the cognitive, perceptual, and motor activities. Play can facilitate the work of occupational therapist since provides better cooperation of the patient, besides helping in its development, increasing its behavioral repertoire, mainly in the accomplishment of activities of daily living. This chapter addresses these issues, discussing the design of a gamified virtual environment that helps occupational therapists to develop the potential of children and adolescents with mild, moderate, and severe neuropsychomotor disorder. For that, the authors present an investigation of the use of a gamified virtual environment and interaction devices in the training of activities of daily living. As result, they note that games as assistive technology can encourage the integration of education, rehabilitation, and habilitation of people in situations of vulnerability and social risk, providing access and inclusion through playful and challenging activities.


2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 484-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Marinho Cezar da Cruz ◽  
Maria Luisa Guillaumon Emmel

OBJECTIVE: to verify whether there are associations among occupational roles, independence to perform Activities of Daily Living, purchasing power, and assistive technology for individuals with physical disabilities. METHOD: 91 individuals with physical disabilities participated in the study. The instruments used were: Role Checklist, Brazilian Economic Classification Criterion, Barthel Index, and a Questionnaire to characterize the subjects. RESULTS: an association with a greater number of roles was found among more independent individuals using a lower number of technological devices. Higher purchasing power was associated with a lower functional status of dependence. CONCLUSION: even though technology was not directly associated with independence, the latter was associated with a greater number of occupational roles, which requires reflection upon independence issues when considering the participation in occupational roles. These findings support interdisciplinary actions designed to promote occupational roles in individuals with physical disabilities.


Author(s):  
Shelley Fulton ◽  
Laura Wilkinson ◽  
Kathy Stiller

Purpose: A combination of a stroke and spinal cord injury adversely affecting both upper limbs is an unusual combination for a patient presenting for outpatient rehabilitation services. Although the management of these conditions in isolation is well documented, there is limited literature regarding rehabilitation for these conditions in combination, particularly the use of assistive technology in this setting. Methods: A case report is presented of a 53-year-old male referred for outpatient rehabilitation following a left-sided stroke, with resultant dense right sided hemiplegia. A pre-existing spinal cord injury had affected his left upper limb such that he had marked proximal weakness. This combination of impairments meant he was unable to perform even basic activities of daily living involving the upper limbs. A therapy program, led by an occupational therapist with support and input from the multi-disciplinary team, included the use of an assistive device (a mobile arm support) to facilitate functional upper limb activities. This greatly improved his ability to do upper limb functional activities. Conclusion: The use of an assistive device enabled the patient to engage in meaningful activities of daily living involving the upper limbs.


Author(s):  
Isabel Cristina Siqueira da Silva ◽  
Luan Carlos Nesi ◽  
Viviane da Silva Machado

Ludic games and gamification processes can extend functional skills in players as they integrate different intelligences and stimulate the cognitive, perceptual, and motor activities. Play can facilitate the work of occupational therapist since provides better cooperation of the patient, besides helping in its development, increasing its behavioral repertoire, mainly in the accomplishment of activities of daily living. This chapter addresses these issues, discussing the design of a gamified virtual environment that helps occupational therapists to develop the potential of children and adolescents with mild, moderate, and severe neuropsychomotor disorder. For that, the authors present an investigation of the use of a gamified virtual environment and interaction devices in the training of activities of daily living. As result, they note that games as assistive technology can encourage the integration of education, rehabilitation, and habilitation of people in situations of vulnerability and social risk, providing access and inclusion through playful and challenging activities.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Lukas Wohofsky ◽  
Philip Scharf ◽  
Sandra Lattacher ◽  
Daniela Krainer

BACKGROUND: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong developmental disorder with increasing prevalence rates. People affected by ASD do often need support in various activities of daily living mainly provided by formal or informal caregivers. Assistive technology can help to increase autonomy and safety of people on the autism spectrum and thus decrease the burden of care. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess the state of the art of assistive technology (AT) that supports autonomy, self-reliance comfort and wellbeing of people with ASD or aiming to prevent dangerous situations or shutdowns, caused by stressful (environmental) situations. Another aim is to analyze the fields of application and type of the proposed technologies and to explore the evaluations conducted. METHODS: A scoping review was carried out where the databases MEDLINE, IEEE and ACM Digital Library were searched. The identified articles were grouped according to the objective of the technology – the supported area of life that is assisted by the proposed systems. Furthermore, the conducted evaluations of the ATs in the papers were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 40 articles were included in this review with a balanced distribution in the different fields of application (Communication & Social Life; Daily Living Assistants; Safety & Security). Eighteen studies conducted an evaluation of the proposed technology with people with ASD, mainly testing the functionality of the systems. CONCLUSION: The proposed technologies support people in the autism spectrum according to the main outcomes and symptoms of ASD. Further research is needed to determine the usefulness and acceptance of the ATs.


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