The Assistive Technology Passport: A Resource for Enhancing Capabilities as a Result of Better Access to Assistive Technology

• Published in: Societies (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 12; no. 6; p. 182
• Main Authors: Maalim, Mohamed I, MacLachlan, Malcolm
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-12-2022
• Subjects: Access; Access control; Access to information; Adaptive technology; Aging; Analysis; assistive technology; Assistive technology devices; assistive technology passport; capability approach (CA); Chronic conditions; Disability; Disabled persons; Environmental aspects; Environmental factors; Forecasts and trends; Handicapped access device; Handicapped accessibility; Handicapped assistance devices; Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA); Licensing, certification and accreditation; Market trend/market analysis; Multiculturalism & pluralism; Participation; Passports; People with disabilities; Political participation; R&D; Research & development; Self-help devices for the disabled; Social participation; Technology; Technology application; Wheelchairs; Ireland; United Kingdom
• DOI: 10.3390/soc12060182
• EISSN: 2075-4698

The value of Assistive Technology in enabling active and equal participation in political, social, economic, and cultural life of people with disabilities, people ageing, and people with chronic conditions is broadly accepted. However, most of the global population who need assistive technology (AT) lack access to it, hence the call for international efforts to improve access to AT. Drawing from the capability approach (CA) developed by Amartya Sen and Martha C. Nussbaum, we explore factors that may hinder or facilitate access to AT. We examine the idea of an AT Passport as an innovative user-centered approach for improving access to AT. We used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore service users’ lived experiences of access to AT and their understanding of the AT Passport concept. We identified the core values of human diversity, equity, access to opportunity, and individual freedom to choose a life of significance to them. Access to AT is central to expanding these capabilities subject to conducive personal and social-contextual issues. The AT Passport could be developed as a capability-enhancing resource by facilitating access to AT, harnessing the diversity of people’s personal, social, and environmental factors to enrich peoples’ capability sets. Further research is required to identify core AT Passport functionalities, usability, and acceptability features.