In considering assistive technology and customized employment it is very important to find out what it is that the person really needs. So we have got to go through a discovery process and start matching up kind of what this person needs, what are their goals, and how can we wrap the assistive technology to support those goals? Sometimes people actually put the cart before the horse if you will. They find that they cannot get this job unless we have this technology and blah blah blah blah blah. >
And they are not necessarily looking at low cost solutions. And there are low cost solutions, especially now. It is a very exciting time that we live in because there are some amazing solutions out there. What I encourage folks to do is to go through the discovery process, collaborate or have your team approach, try before you buy. Use those AT Act Project Libraries that every State has. Know the funding streams and also create funding streams for assistive technology, so that we can get more folks into the job and not let this be a barrier to their employment. >
I use the HAT Model when it comes to looking at assistive technology. I am sure a lot of you are familiar with this. This is actually something that Cook and Hussy came up, and it has been very helpful. But it is also helpful whenever I am explaining to people with learning disabilities and other disabilities about how we are selecting the assistive technology that we are connecting them with. So I actually show them this model. And I actually talk to them about looking at their skills and abilities and the tasks. >
We are going to be looking at the context that you are going to using the assistive technology. Are you going to in a cube where a lot of people are going to be listening? Perhaps that is not the best place one could use voice input or a screen reader? Or maybe we could use another way and come up with another solution? And then what are the assistive technologies that we can use to build on the strengths of the individual? >
I also show this little diagram. It is a little picture, and sometimes I fill it out with the folks, especially a lot of folks with learning disabilities. A lot of the folks that I work with, things they can actually take away. And this is one of them. Hey, you have a lot of strengths. And here are some of your strengths. We are going to start talking along those lines. And then I talk about how we are going to manage your weaknesses. Looking at what some of the weaknesses are, and then we start filling in the box with assistive technology solutions and how we are going to manage them. Dr. Greg actually came up with this, and I have found that it has been very helpful. >
We have a team approach, as I said before. The person with the disability's circle of support, family of choice, they count and are absolutely part of this. And teachers, providers, IT professionals, assistive technology practitioners, occupational therapist, and absolutely the employer, needs to be involved. I also introduced that team to some of the concepts when it comes to just keeping somebody safe, and also some of the things that are out there when it comes to universal design. I wanted to share these things with you because a lot of times this is one of those things that people contact me late about and say, "Could you send me some of that information?" I will give it to you now. >
We talk about the consequences of poor work design and about how we do need to focus on ergonomics. A lot of the folks that I have worked with that have learning disabilities, especially if they are doing something that is more manual, or it could be just working at a desk or what have you, but a lot of times they end up with repetitive injuries, stress injuries, which actually ends up hurting them down the road, in some way. They lead to absenteeism, they are dissatisfied, their employer is dissatisfied, low productivity, poor work quality, it just becomes a domino effect. So I actually talk about ergonomics and the science of fitting the job or the environment to the individual. >
I also talk about universal design which I know that you all are pretty familiar with, should be very familiar with, and just trying to let them know about how the design of products or environments should be usable by all people. It is interesting how this has actually helped a lot of our employers. We have found that the conversation that we have grows, and we have stated having different conversations that continue down the road based on these universal design ideas. We get called back and asked more about universal design. And those kind of philosophies. So it is exciting because it is starting to open doors for other folks which is very exciting. >
And then I actually sometimes show them all the different repetitive motions. Inappropriate posture, appropriate and proper posture, and then just kind of a cheat sheet if you will of how not to injure their body. That is very detailed but I just wanted to throw that in there. And then also give examples of how to prevent injury by a very specific thing here where I have a picture showing a person with their right arm out, they are reaching out, and their left arm is kind of bent in. But it shows where you want to have your, I guess what it is that you are working on. >
So within your 20 inch range you want to have the most common tasks that you are going to be doing. So if you staple a lot, you want you stapler within 20 inches. You do not want to have to reach all the time to do that. If you are using a computer you want to have you keyboard within 20 inches. Hopefully within that little yellow section which is like within 6 or 7 inches. I find that a lot of times these little diagrams do help. They help educate the team, because we are talking about a team approach, and it helps educate the person that we are working with, especially when comes to AT. >
As I am sure that a lot of you all know, we also have to get rid of a lot of the myths that are out there. A lot of times people think that assistive technology or accomodations are going to be so expensive. And Jan has been very clear, The Job Accommodations Network, in making all of us aware that accomodations cost, 71% of them, less that $500.00, It is $500.00 or less. And 20% cost nothing at all. >
Some of the things that I have learned when it comes to AT is actually learning how to define assistive technology for the team, and for the person themselves. And I have also found that some experiences, especially if somebody has been around a long time, where assistive technology has not been necessarily positive. So you might have tried to use a computer 10 years ago. Or even, I had someone come in the other day who admitted the last time they had used the computer they used DOS. They couldn't remember all that. And I was like, "Really?" >
Now that we have moved to icon based, more friendly, assistive technology, and more friendly software, we are finding that it is more inclusive. So a lot of times what I do is I explore those experiences with people; the good, the bad, and the ugly. >
Same thing I find with even the tape recorders. I might suggest that to somebody as a solution for somebody with a personal learning disability who is struggling with some of their memory issues. They will say, "I don't want a tape recorder because they are so bulky, etc." And then I show them all of the solutions that are out there. And that is where we go back to that thing of try before you buy and also the whole consumer choice. Letting the person decide. >
I really like this saying, and I think it translates well into what we are talking about in general when we are talking about technology and the power of technology and that it does give people the opportunities to move about their environment, communicate, be more independent, which allows people to be seen as more of an equal as opposed to someone they have to take care of. And a lot of times people easily jump to that thing where yes this makes sense for someone using a wheelchair, or somebody who has another disability, maybe a sensory disability. But a lot of times this is true for people with learning disabilities. >
It is amazing how showing somebody with a learning disability that they can do their banking online, and they can have it read out loud to them, is. Or they can get a degree because they can interact with the books and the materials because they are accessible That has made a big difference. >
I am just going to give you a couple more examples of folks that I have worked with and kind of how I have used this customized employment model and assistive technology and working specifically with people with learning disabilities. So meet Lisa. This is pretty much what I found out about Lisa before I met her. She was a special education student who dropped out. She dropped out of that program so she didn't have a degree. She was labeled as having mental illness, severe anxiety, and learning disabled, was actually on the report. >
She worked briefly for a railroad, a Dollar Store, and a factory, and her tenure was about a week at each before she resigned. When I hung out with her and we actually spent more time, and it was once again this team approach, we started looking at it from a customized employment model. We found that she has a strong interest in coffee. Every time we were going to meet she wanted to meet in a coffee shop. >
She has a big interest in baking. So we actually took the resource ownership approach that we talked about. We did a self-employment model. And we actually ended up purchasing an espresso machine because the coffee shop that we were meeting at actually didn't have an espresso machine. And it was something they could not afford. And so they said yes we would love to hire her. But you know we need an espresso machine, blah, blah, blah, blah. >
So as we started negotiating sure enough this is what happened. And so Lisa ended up getting a job. And she owns this espresso machine. So if she lost her job she could take the espresso machine with here. She has been on the job over two years now, which is very exciting. >
And we have actually wrapped some other assistive technology supports around here, including a digital camera, because she has gotten into baking and she actually has taken some baking classes and some candy creation classes, cake decorating courses, and so the digital camera helps her with her memory, which actually has helped her with her anxiety. So it interesting how all of that has come together. >
We used inspiration for a recipe and activity flow chart, which was very helpful. It is picture based, and it made a lot of sense to her. And now she has actually used that inspiration to create other flow charts, if you will, for her personal life which is great. >
And also timers with pictures. When she is baking, I am not a baker, but in this coffee shop they actually do have a little bakery back there. And they have lots of ovens and that sort of stuff going on. And so she actually was having a tough time keeping up with all those activities. So what we did was we started putting timers on everything, and then in addition putting pictures with each timer. So she knew what was ready, and when it would be ready, and all of that. So that is very exciting. And she is employed. That is the big thing. >
One of the several things that we have learned in working with her was self-esteem issues, and how much that has affected her. And it was hard to tell where a problem had to do with one of her learning disabilities, or was it with anxiety, or was it her depression? What is going on? And so when we got to the root of that it seemed that was actually surfaced is that she felt surrounded by value judgments from her family, and she didn't really feel like she could be successful. That was very very hard. >
I love this little quote that my Mom always said, "Bring hope and light to the situation." So that is one those little jewels that I will pass on to you all. And so I find that a lot of times that the folks that we are working with is that what happens, self-esteem issues. Also she did not feel like she had any room for failure because she had not been successful at her other jobs. And so we created an atmosphere where it was okay, because the truth is we all succeed and we all have areas that we didn't succeed in. And what can we learn from those?>