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An independent assessment
and engineering service for persons with a disability who require Special
Controls
in order to be able to access powered wheelchair mobility or other Assistive
Technology.
Service
Philosophy
The
philosophy behind the service is that all members of society should be able
to benefit by having some access to the advantages that relatively simple
technology can bring them.
There is a vast body of evidence that Specialist Services should be developed
and improved in both their capacity and their scope. This does not necessarily
seem to be happening within the NHS due to continued pressures to reduce
costs and increase output.
I believe a broader view must be taken of the whole arena of Specialist
Technology provision for the severely disabled but intellectually capable
person. There must be greater integration of the currently disparate services
of Education, Social Services,
Wheelchair
Services and Electronic Mobility/Assistive Technology Services.
This
is but one aspect of “Integration” referred to in the name of the
service I wish to provide.
It
is not morally, socially or legally acceptable to discriminate on the type
of person who can be
provided
with integrated mobility/assistive technology, and we
must
not forget that clients are in fact “people”, and not just statistics.
What benefit is a powered chair if, for example, the client wishes to go
to school or college in it, but cannot access their education effectively
and with independence due to the lack of appropriate access
technology.
It
is relatively easy to fit together items of Mobility Assistive Technology
which can be persuaded to perform most of the functions required by the lifestyle
of the client, but so often the method of operation is so complex and convoluted,
or requires the client to be able to, a) read, b) a tiny LCD display with
poor contrast, ( which is also very expensive), that the client gives up
because of the cognitive effort required to understand the operation of the
system, or the physical effort required to access the various menus
etc.
With some relatively simple and inexpensive engineering, it is possible to
provide solutions for clients who use multiple switches for example, so that
they can effortlessly and easily transfer those switches from one function
to another without necessarily having to resort to the expense and complexity
of the standard solutions offered by some of the commercial manufacturers
of control system. In addition, a bright and visually simple display informs
the client which function they have currently selected.
I believe it is no longer acceptable to continue to complain about the lack
of resources available within the NHS. We must make the resources available
to address these issues, otherwise there will be a sub section of our society,
the most vulnerable, the most incapable of self-help, those with the greatest
need for social inclusion, who will be abandoned by society, by the Health
Service, and by those with the skill and technological means, to a life of
diminished existence, when – with a little help, they can become confident,
reasonably independent members of society who can communicate with anyone
they wish, just as we do; who can use the resources and services provided
by the Internet, which has now become a completely essential part of modern
life; and can therefore have access to employment opportunities, whatever
level of physical disability they may have.
This
is the third aspect of “Integration”, that
of including severely disabled persons in all aspects of community life by
offering them greater independence through the provision of mobility and
communicative assistive technologies.
Under my creative guidance, the Special Controls Service, part of the Posture
and Mobility Services of the West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre in Selly
Oak, Birmingham, developed solutions which effectively integrate mobility,
communication, environmental controls and/or computer access, very cheaply,
and with the minimum of cognitive effort on the part of the client. They
have also proved extremely reliable, as evidenced by the almost zero failure
rate of the systems supplied.
It is now my desire to bring to those members of society who chose not to
be limited by that which can be provided by the NHS, the opportunity to create
cheaper, simpler, more effective systems that enhances the lives of disabled
persons, and their carers, by making available to them systems that are SAFE,
RELIABLE and EASY TO USE.
Geoff Harbach.
Proprietor.
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