Low Vision and Prescription Medication
A study by the National Institute of Health found that 55% of seniors take their medications incorrectly. Many older people deal with normal age-related vision loss and others have low vision or blindness. According to the National Eye Institute, about 135 million people around the world have low vision. There are some resources, including Assistive Technology…
Read MoreAccess Moves Fashion Forward!
In her 2017 TedTalk, ‘Why Design Should Include Everyone’, Sinéad Burke (writer, educator, and little person) asks, “who are we not designing for? Design impinges on the clothes that I want to wear. I want garments that reflect my personality. It’s difficult to find in the children’s wear department. And often women’s wear requires far…
Read MoreAT for Caring for Our Furry Friends
By Guest Blogger, RoAnne Chaney I have always liked cats, my own and friends’ pets. Dogs are OK, but cats are my favorite fur babies. They are soft, cuddly, and usually, have unique character features. When I started using a wheelchair and my last cat died from illness causing me a lot of pain and…
Read MoreThe Role of Assistive Tech (AT) in Recovery from Domestic Violence: Part One
Introduction Most of the focus of MDRC’s AT work in domestic violence involves assuring that people with disabilities who are assaulted are able to access existing resources to the same extent that anyone without a disability can. These resources include shelters, support of personal resource needs, support for personal and family safety, and effective use…
Read MoreGetting Out
Now that the severe frigid temperatures have lifted, people are beginning to venture out again. But people with disabilities who use assistive devices don’t have the option or want to just stay inside all winter. Despite whether the ground-hog saw his shadow or not, we have more winter to come! And believe it or not,…
Read MoreThe Last Straw
By MATP Staff Jen Mullins, BS, CTRS “Though plastic straws are a luxury for some, they are a necessity for others. Straws function as an accessibility tool and have historically been used to offer independence for people with disabilities.” –Mashable, 2018. During a trip to Washington D.C. last year, my first meal in the city…
Read MoreCaptioned Phones
By Aimee Sterk, LMSW, MATP Staff Caption Phones Sitting in the doctor’s office waiting for my daughter’s name to be called, I glanced at the magazine offerings and a telephone caught my eye. At first I thought it was for patients to use to call for a ride after their appointment, but then I…
Read MoreWhat WCAG 2.1 Means for Access
Introduction I attended the Accessible Learning Conference at Michigan State University in December of 2018. There were many interesting presentations, but the one that helped me the most was a discussion of the new additions to the web and mobile accessibility standards, known as WCAG 2.1. The standard itself is pretty dense, and I found…
Read MoreAll I Want for Christmas is these Two AT
My colleagues and I are coming up with holiday wishlists of AT (assisitive technology). Since one of my favorite hobbies is cooking, of course, I want some things to help me out in the kitchen. I have chronic upper back pain that usually flares up if I have to do a lot of chopping or…
Read MoreMy Wish for 2019: Protected Net Neutrality
By MATP Staff Jen Mullins During a recent trip to Washington D.C., organizers from Community Catalyst arranged for me to meet with staff from Senator Debbie Stabenow‘s office and Congresswoman Debbie Dingell‘s office. In preparation for these meetings, I was encouraged to talk about the need for continued protections for medicaid and medicare and also…
Read More