When a affected person has a stroke, a traumatic mind harm, or another situation that limits motion, occupational remedy is paramount to serving to that affected person maximize the mobility they do have.
The work has typically entailed easy simulations. A therapist, for instance, could lead a stroke affected person via a cooking train utilizing bean luggage and balls inside a rehab clinic. However enhancements in know-how are additionally giving therapists new instruments. Digital know-how can present sufferers with a real-life situation permitting them to visualise the utensils and components within the kitchen.
This is only one instance, in line with occupational remedy assistant professor Jonathan Legarte, of how new know-how can be utilized to re-teach the mind on its journey to regain the features it misplaced after a mind harm.
However for a simulation to have occupational remedy worth, the know-how should be designed with the affected person in thoughts. That is the place his class — Assistive Expertise and Environmental Modifications — is available in.
“Digital actuality is just one element,” Legarte stated. “On this class, college students study completely different low-tech and high-tech choices to help these with disabilities, about 80% low-tech and 20% high-tech. Assistive know-how needs to be low value for any person and simply replaceable.”
The Course: Occupational Remedy 750 – Assistive Expertise and Environmental Modifications
This course is obtainable to second-year occupational remedy college students inside UNLV’s School of Integrated Health Sciences. College students faucet into their creativity as they discover ways to design assistive gadgets for people with disabilities.
This class takes place each Tuesday from midday to three p.m. on the college’s Shadow Lane campus, the place the occupational remedy doctorate program is situated.
How does this course profit UNLV’s occupational remedy college students?
“On this class, our college students acquire an understanding of the larger image,” Legarte stated. “Every little thing we do technology-wise has been constructed off of making an attempt to fulfill the wants of somebody with a incapacity.”
College students discover ways to use accessibility choices that exist already. “The present iteration of Air Pods is aiming to be useful listening to aids,” he stated. “So what can we offer that’s already on the market for folks with disabilities? Do we’ve got to make them ourselves? Or do we’ve got to depend on assistive know-how consultants?”
Legarte stated college students have to put themselves into the sneakers of these with mobility limitations in order that they will higher envision which software is perhaps helpful as they regain the power to finish their each day duties.
On the finish of the spring semester, college students take part within the assistive know-how honest, held contained in the Lied Library, the place they current their invention and present their college members and fellow classmates how they can assist sufferers enhance their mobility.
“The environmental modifications permit our college students to overview dwelling environments and make suggestions to raised accommodate people with disabilities,” Legarte stated. “This might embrace serving to somebody attain the next space, or possibly creating one thing to assist somebody who lacks the wonderful motor abilities to put in writing, or possibly an concept that helps somebody regain their capability to stroll or get away from bed.”
How can digital actuality function an intervention for ache?
Digital actuality can be utilized for meditation, ache administration, and — extra just lately — rehabilitative advantages, like stroke rehab.
“In terms of occupational remedy rehab, we have a look at giving sufferers therapeutic energy, which suggests giving them therapy choices they discover interesting. Machines and weights will be intimidating, however digital actuality gives a distinct avenue,” Legarte stated. “Analysis for the reason that Nintendo Wii and the Xbox Kinect [came out] present video video games have remedy enchantment. Digital actuality is that subsequent step in therapeutic gaming however has much more potential than simply video video games.”
Legarte added that digital actuality creates a useful surroundings. For individuals who had a stroke, simulated actions are helpful as a result of there’s a tangible aim in thoughts.
“Let’s say they use digital actuality to simulate a cooking activity. They will see the range and the utensils which registers within the mind. Evaluate that with a simulated activity within the remedy gymnasium that sometimes consists of utilizing bean luggage and balls. The digital actuality primarily improves their notion and creates a greater surroundings to understand tangible features,” he stated. “Though the duty isn’t there, it’s extra there than it will be utilizing bean luggage and balls in a remedy gymnasium.”
Are there any books or TV reveals which may give folks a greater understanding of what this class entails?
“This class actually teaches you to be the MacGyver of the remedy area. You’re solely restricted as to what you’ll be able to think about,” Legarte stated.
What ought to the lay individual learn about this class, and the way can they profit from it?
“For the lay one who is struggling financially to acquire a sure system or struggling to finish sure duties, the long run is in 3-D printed applied sciences,” Legarte stated. “What would sometimes be an costly splint to make, now you can discover a file and 3-D print it at your native library, and even your individual dwelling you probably have a 3-D printer.
“That know-how is extra mainstream and is changing into extra inexpensive nowadays. You don’t even have to know the right way to code. For those who can consider it, somebody has in all probability already made it.”
