Promoting Environmental Control, Social Interaction, and Leisure/Academy Engagement Among People with Severe/Profound Multiple Disabilities Through Assistive Technology

Author(s):  
Claudia De Pace ◽  
Fabrizio Stasolla

When the authors talk about Assistive Technology (AT) they refer to all technological solutions that allow persons with multiple disabilities and profound cognitive disability to overcome their isolation and passivity to move around their environment, communicate with others, and to be involved developmentally in appropriate activities that they would be unable to do without this technology. There is an increasing range of AT available and the purpose of this contribution is to provide an overview of different aspects of daily living AT that enables people with multiple disabilities to interact independently with their preferred stimuli. The aim of this chapter is to provide an outline of technological resources used in rehabilitation research with persons with severe/profound and multiple disabilities and discuss the use of such resources. We focus on particular rehabilitation programs that involve the use of technological devices within the framework of conventional behavioral intervention for the acquisition and the maintenance of specific responses.

2015 ◽  
pp. 1389-1424
Author(s):  
Claudia De Pace ◽  
Fabrizio Stasolla

When the authors talk about Assistive Technology (AT) they refer to all technological solutions that allow persons with multiple disabilities and profound cognitive disability to overcome their isolation and passivity to move around their environment, communicate with others, and to be involved developmentally in appropriate activities that they would be unable to do without this technology. There is an increasing range of AT available and the purpose of this contribution is to provide an overview of different aspects of daily living AT that enables people with multiple disabilities to interact independently with their preferred stimuli. The aim of this chapter is to provide an outline of technological resources used in rehabilitation research with persons with severe/profound and multiple disabilities and discuss the use of such resources. We focus on particular rehabilitation programs that involve the use of technological devices within the framework of conventional behavioral intervention for the acquisition and the maintenance of specific responses.


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):  
Monica Jamali-Phiri ◽  
Ikenna D. Ebuenyi ◽  
Emma M. Smith ◽  
Juba Alyce Kafumba ◽  
Malcolm MacLachlan ◽  
...  

This paper aims to address the information gap on the influence of socio-demographic factors on access and utilization of Assistive Technology (AT) among children with disabilities in Malawi. Thus, it contributes towards the realization of the recommendations of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities and the development of a framework for creating an effective national AT policy. The paper used two statistically matched datasets, namely, the 2017 survey on Living conditions among persons with disabilities in Malawi and the 2015-16 Malawi Demographic and Health survey. Logistic regression and structural equation modeling techniques were utilized to assess the influence of socio-demographic factors on the use of AT among children with disabilities. The results indicate that there is a high level of unmet need for AT among young children aged 2 to 9 and those living in urban areas. The results further indicate that children with multiple disabilities have lower odds (OR = 0.924) of using AT for personal mobility compared to children with a single functional difficulty. These results entail that AT needs for children with multiple disabilities are not adequately addressed. Therefore, when developing policies on AT, younger children and those with multiple disabilities need to be specifically targeted.


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