Assistive Technology Usage and Unmet Need amongst People with Disabilities in Ireland

We commissioned the Work Research Centre to examine Assistive Technology Usage and Unmet Need amongst People with Disabilities in Ireland. The study, published in 2016, involved analysis of the data on AT from the National Disability Survey conducted by the Central Statistics Office in 2006.

Although the Survey did not use the term ‘Assistive Technology' the questionnaire included many items of AT in the lists of 'aids' for the person's disability. It therefore provides valuable insight into use and unmet need of assistive technologies.

Research on the Provision of Assistive Technology in Ireland

We commissioned the Work Research Centre to conduct Research on the Provision of Assistive Technology in Ireland. The overall objective was to provide guidance for the future development of the Irish system in ways that would reflect established or emerging good practice in the field.

The study, published in 2012, examined the approaches to provision of AT in Ireland and a number of other jurisdictions with relatively well-developed systems. The scope of the study covered provision of Assistive Technology to meet the needs of people with disabilities and older people across three core settings – home/community/ everyday life, employment and education.

Assistive Products and Consumer Products that Support Choice and Control for Persons with Disabilities

The theme of our 2021/22 Research Promotion Scheme is ‘Assistive Products and Consumer Products that Support Choice and Control for Persons with Disabilities’. Two grants were awarded and research is currently underway.

Investigation of the Universal Design of Fall Detection Technologies in the Smart Home and their Impact on Lifetime Communities

In 2017, the theme of our Research Promotion Scheme was ‘Progressing lifetime communities through Universal Design’.

Cork Institute of Technology received one of the grants and produced the report 'Investigation of the Universal Design of Fall Detection Technologies in the Smart Home and their Impact on Lifetime Communities'.

You can read more about Homes for Smart Ageing and our 2017 Universal Design Grand Challenge on our Centre for Excellence in Universal Design website.

Effective Implementation and Monitoring of Telehealth and Telecare in Ireland: Learning from International Best Practice

On a topic closely related to Assistive Technology, the 'Effective Implementation and Monitoring of Telehealth and Telecare in Ireland: Learning from International Best Practice' document synthesises the information provided in a number of papers relating to telecare / telehealth commissioned by and developed for the National Disability Authority between 2014 and 2017.

The papers in question were developed by researchers in the Work Research Centre (WRC), the National Disability Authority and the University of Ulster, and this report has taken key learning and information from each of them to create this composite briefing paper.

This document presents learning from current systems, services and structures of telehealth / telecare provision in other jurisdictions (Northern Ireland, Scotland and Spain). As well as this, the document outlines

  • how telehealth / telecare is being integrated into the design of social care and housing (mainly by understanding telecare systems)
  • the Universal Design perspective on telecare and telehealth
  • challenges to adopting telehealth / telecare systems