Painter Stone
Staff Writer
Wyoming Assistance Technology Resources (WATR) is an organization that seeks to provide Wyoming residents with assistive technology that aims to improve their quality of life.
Ryan Rausch, a WATR employee, said one of the biggest problems people have with assistance technology is the stigma that is attached to it.
“This is my personal opinion and I heard this yesterday from a professor of disability studies, and she said, ‘get over yourself, everyone uses assistive technology,” said Rausch.
Assistive technology is technology that helps people overcome challenges of everyday life. This can be seen in many forms, from glasses to highly technical devices like Amazon’s Alexa.
Certain pieces of assistive technology can ostracize a person due to how unique the pieces look. However, technology like Siri, the Amazon Echo and Alexa all came from the world of assistive technology.
“As far as stigmatization of assistance technology, just take a look around,” Rausch said. “It is being used everywhere. Like a seatbelt, or a light switch.”
Rausch said the best way to see if someone could adapt to a piece of assistance technology was using the device in a natural environment, saying it would increase the chance of it being a success.
WATR supports a loan system that allows people in need of assistive technology with non-costly access to it.
“The goal of our device loan program is for us to provide an opportunity for a Wyoming consumer to get their hands on it, try it out, see if it is going to work with them,” Rausch said.
Assistive technology also has been developing very rapidly.
“What used to be $3,000 dollars or more, to make your house fully automated is now manageable depending on how extravagant you want to go, you could get a good system for $300 maybe $500 dollars,” Rausch said.
“I think we are going to get to a point where our control interfaces, meaning our phones, will naturally adapt to that person’s ability. “
WATR holds open labs on most Tues. and Wed. from 2 to 4 p.m in the College of Health Sciences, where students can test out assistive technology equipment as well as learn to use the emerging new technology.
