Our society has witnessed an exponential growth in information and the technologies
to identify, access, and utilize this information. At the same time, separate assistive
technologies (AT) have been developed to enable people with disabilities to access
information and control their environment. Recently, the disability and technology
design communities have questioned the concept of separate development; that is, the
development of technology for persons with disabilities as distinctively different
from design for the rest of society. Instead, they have advocated for universal design—design
of products and environments for use by all people. Technologies, such as accessible
Internet/World Wide Web interfaces, and age-friendly access-ready community environments
have the potential to open additional doors to available information, personal control,
and equitable participation for people with developmental disabilities. Such technologies
and environments, whether assistive or universally designed, hold great promise for
people with developmental disabilities who seek to live and participate in the community
across the life span. These technologies, however, also carry a significant cost in
relation to the financial resources needed to obtain them, the systems to implement
them, and the social investment needed to support and sustain their use over time.
Thus, technology has the potential to be a “bane” or a “boon” for people with disabilities
and, in turn, for others in their everyday social worlds. As demonstrated by the quotations
at the start of this article, assistive technology can make a significant difference
in a person's life. Unfortunately, whether that person gets access to needed technology
in the first place or to what extent it is supported over time is closely connected
to the social environment and the level of support it affords. The quotations also
illustrate the key role nurses and other health care professionals play in this process
as members of that social environment, including the power they may have in determining
AT need relative to life decisions such as community living.
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Article info
Footnotes
Preparation of this article was supported in part by the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Aging with Developmental Disability, Grant No. H133B980046 from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
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© 2003 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
