Technology aids boost human abilities

Assisted technologies that support cognition, mobility and self-care are now so integral to human life that most people do not consider them as supportive aids

A simple pair of spectacles restores vision for the partially-sighted, hearing aids open up the world of sound for the hearing-impaired, and phone alerts remind people it’s time to have prescription medicine, or simply get up to walk around to get sufficient activity. Assisted technologies that support communication, cognition, mobility and self-care are now so integrated across the human lifespan that most people don’t even consider them as supportive aids. 

Apart from wheelchairs, spectacles, hearing aids, prostheses, wheelchairs, and so on, assisted technologies include digital services, such as reminder phone alerts, tools to monitor health indicators such as glucose levels, smart homes, text-to-speech technologies, communication and time management tools. The benefits of making assistive products widely available are many, ranging from enabling independence and inclusion, which leads to greater economic and social participation. It also reduces the dependence and impact on carers, who are very often family. 

One in three — or 2.5 billion — people need one or more assistive products in their lifetimes, but nearly one billion of them don’t have access to these life-changing products, according to a new WHO-Unicef Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT). As the world’s population ages and the prevalence of lifestyle diseases like diabetes and hypertension rises, those in need of assistive products is projected to rise to 3.5 billion by 2050, according to the GReAT report. (https://www.unicef-irc.org/article/2275-unicef-and-who-launch-the-first-global-report-on-assistive-technology.html).

Globally, there is an unmet need for 200 million people requiring assistive products for low vision; 75 million in need of a wheelchair; and over 400 million in need of assistive products for hearing. Providing assisted technology to growing children brings the additional challenge of frequent adjustments and replacements of the assistive products. Among the leading barriers to access are lack of awareness, affordability, lack of services, inadequate product quality, range and quantity, procurement and supply chain challenges as key barriers, and uneven distribution of the health workforce.

There are many ways in which blockchain technologies could support those with disabilities, by enabling access to services online with increased security. 

The return on investment for assistive technology is around nine times higher, because it improves functioning and independence and leads to greater participation in education, the labour market and the community. They enable people to live healthy, productive, independent and dignified lives, while supporting countries to diversify and improve workforce capacity.

There are many examples of assistive technologies. These range from relatively simple ones like text to speech; reading pens; visual search engines; to more complex technologies. The evolution of 5G and ongoing research push toward 6G is enabling significant advances in scalable user-centric biosignal monitoring for assistive technology healthcare applications, says Ericsson.

Researchers at Ericsson say biosignals can be acquired from various assistive technology devices, ranging from simple smartwatches that track movement or pulse rate, to complex devices like prosthetic limbs, prosthetic neural systems and cardiac pacemakers. “The sensors on such devices collect dense time-series data that needs to be processed in real-time, with minimal delay, to deliver critical actuations. For example, a person using a prosthetic limb needs urgent medical care when they fall, or a cardiac pacemaker needs to re-calibrate when there is an abnormal ECG event,” according to a blog by Ericsson scientists. (https://www.ericsson.com/en/blog/2022/5/5g-biosignals-assistive-technology)

Development of assistive technologies will also have to factor in patient diversity in various regions. Literacy levels and familiarity with technologies are critical factors. Those who depend on assistive technology must find such devices easy to use.