Copy
April - June 2017
 
Quarterly Update
 
Spotlight on Indonesia
Standards Launched at ISPO
GATE Welcomes New Member
Building GATE Networks
     
Assistive Technology Changes Lives
Intern Opportunities at WHO Geneva
Updates and Links
Upcoming Events

Spotlight on Indonesia

A woman in Indonesia using a manual wheelchair, surrounded by children also using different types of wheelchairs and their caregivers

When you think of Indonesia, volcanic islands and beaches may spring to mind. But did you know that Indonesia is also home to a unique social health insurance specifically for persons with disabilities? This insurance is called Jamkesus Disabilitas, a scheme under the Ministry of Health that provides benefits packages which include assistive products such as wheelchairs, prosthesis and orthosis, visual aids and hearing aids. The government of the Yogyakarta province has been working on the implementation of Jamkesus Disabilitas since 2013, and has since made increasing progress in providing assistive products, with 64 assistive products provided in 2015 to 876 products in 2016.

This social health insurance also has exciting implications for GATE. Developments emerged after Jamkesus Disabilitas, in partnership with local stakeholders, organized a meeting that assembled top international experts. The workshop sought to provide recommendations for regulation and policy change related to provision of assistive products under the Jamkesus Disabilitas scheme. The successfully organized meeting resulted in expressed commitment from local stakeholders, officials of Jamkesus Disabilitas, the Ministry of Health and WHO country and regional office. As a result, this meeting laid the perfect groundwork to pilot WHO’s GATE initiative in Yogyakarta, province of Indonesia.

Please look forward to more updates on the progress of the pilot initiative soon!

Standards Launched at ISPO

Cover page for the Standards for Prosthetics and Orthotics manual featuring users of both prosthetics and orthoticsIn May 2017, more than 2,000 professionals witnessed the launch of the Standards for Prosthetics and Orthotics. This monumental launch took place at the 16th International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics (ISPO) World Congress in Cape Town, South Africa. Developed by the WHO in partnership with ISPO and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the standards aim to improve access by ensuring that prosthetics and orthotics services are integrated into health services and systems. To attain these goals, the documents include both global standards for prosthetics and orthotics and an implementation manual to assist Member States in setting up, improving or transforming their prosthetics and orthotics services. The standards are an important tool to support governments in fulfilling their commitment to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and more broadly to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

 

 

The new WHO Wheelchair Service Training of Trainers Package (WSTPtot) was also launched during the ISPO World Congress. Following the release of its Guidelines on the provision of manual wheelchairs in less-resourced settings in 2008, WHO in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) developed a series of four training packages to increase wheelchair access in low resourced settings.  The WSTPtot is the latest in this series and focuses on developing trainers to deliver the existing packages.
 

GATE Welcomes New Member

Upon asking Dr. DianeHeadshot of Dr. Diane Bell Bell where her interest in assistive technology stems from, she will tell you about her daughter who was born with a profound hearing impairment. A researcher and activist in the field of assistive technology, Diane’s deep personal connection to the transformative power of assistive technology, as well as her academic and professional qualifications, have made her an excellent new addition to the GATE team.
 
Diane is from Cape Town, South Africa, and joined the GATE team in March. Diane’s work focuses around assistive technology policy, procurement and product standards. She holds an MBA degree and a PhD in Education. Through her work at WHO, she hopes to make a real difference in the lives of persons with disabilities globally through working to make high quality assistive products accessible and affordable, especially in low income countries.

 
Diane can be contacted at: belld@who.int

Building GATE Networks

The GATE Team recognizes that strong partnerships are essential to achieving our vision. We recently held preliminary discussions with three organizations in order to grow the GATE network and to advance GATE’s two key strategic priorities of (1) fostering international cooperation and (2) promoting research and innovation. The first meeting took place with the team from London’s Global Disability Innovation Hub to discuss potential collaboration around evidence-based research in the area of Inclusive Design, as well as the evaluation of GATE’s elearning training package. GATE also met with a group from the Institute of Applied Information Technology at Zurich University, who have developed PAVE, a free online tool that can assess and improve the accessibility of a PDF document. Finally, a meeting was held with the Dutch National Institute for Health and Environment (RVIM), a WHO collaborating centre based in the Netherlands, whose research focus is on public health and consumer safety. GATE looks forward to the important work that can be accomplished through collaborative efforts with these three organizations.

Assistive technology changes lives

Edison José Ferreira sitting in his wheelchair on a homemade lifting platformMy name is Edison Jose Ferreira. I am 56 years old, Brazilian, physically handicapped, and married. At the age of 23, at the height of my football career, I was diagnosed with "Degenerative Neuromuscular Dystrophy Becker Syndrome - CID: G-71.0," which led to the development of Tetraparesis. This diagnosis ended my aspirations to become a professional athlete and redirected my whole life. I began to feel all the hardships, difficulties and prejudices of a person with disabilities, and I began to use a cane to walk. I developed an interest in assistive technology and started to conduct my own research in the area. In 2008, I returned to college specifically to specialize in the field of assistive technology.

The same year, after falling and fracturing my knee, and my son began to play a critical role in my day-to-day mobility. I searched the market for a lifting platform, but due to the high cost I developed my own. Since 2014, I have used a motorized wheelchair to improve my mobility, autonomy and independence.

Regarding assistive technology, I classify my life in ATA (before assistive technology) and DTA (after assistive technology). Assistive technology guarantees the universal right to come and go, and contributes to the social inclusion of people with disabilities and older people. I will continue researching and developing low cost equipment until it is accessible to everyone, following GATE’s vision for a world where everyone has access to affordable products to lead a healthy, productive and dignified life.

To conclude, I quote: "For people technology makes life easier, for people with disabilities assistive technology makes life possible."- RADABAUGH, 1993.
 
We are looking for more stories to share - if you use assistive products or know someone who does, please send us your inspiring stories and photos of how assistive technology changes lives. Please download the Guidance for submitting personal stories for more information. Stories can be emailed to: tebbutte@who.int
 

Intern Opportunities at WHO Geneva

Caitlin and Giulia standing infront of a poster on Sustainable Development goals in the WHO LobbyAre you a student who is passionate about creating an inclusive world through assistive technology? The GATE Team welcomes eager students to complete an internship in the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. This summer, our team has grown as two such students, Caitlin Murphy and Giulia Oggero, have joined the Team as Interns. Caitlin is from Canada and is completing a Master of Public Health at Queen’s University. Giulia is Italian and is completing her Master of Global Health at Trinity College, Dublin. Both Caitlin and Giulia have been working hard to contribute to various team projects, including preparations for the upcoming GREAT Summit and development of the e-learning training package. Caitlin and Giulia agree that the internship has also presented many opportunities for professional development; including, attending the 70th World Health Assembly, networking opportunities, educational seminars, and high-level meetings to expand their overall public health knowledge and experience tremendously.

If you are a student in public health, rehabilitation sciences, assistive technology, or international development, and excited by the potential to contribute to the GATE Team, please apply for an Internship opportunity. For more information and to apply for a WHO internship, please visit the WHO website and send a copy of your application to assistivetechnology@who.int.
 

Update: GREAT (Global Research, Innovation, and Education in Assistive Technology) Summit, 3-4 August 2017)

A woman using a walker, a man being fitted for hearing aids, and a young girl using a communication boardPlanning for the GREAT Summit is well under way and the preliminary programme is now on the WHO website. The Summit will bring together 150 top global researchers, innovators and educators related to assistive technology policy, products, personnel, provision and use. There is more information on the GREAT Summit webpage.

Links
 

The first WHO Fact Sheet on assistive technology is available on the WHO website.

GATE has developed a series of posters as advocacy tools. They are available in Arabic, English, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish and can be downloaded from the GATE webpage.

GATE’s Global priority research agenda can be downloaded here.
 





More than 150 top global researchers, educators, and innovators on assistive technology will be gathering in Geneva this 3-4 August at the GREAT Summit.

2nd Global Conference on Assistive Technology, September 13 & 14, 2017 in Beijing China. For further details please contact Ms. LIU Bofei: fjcydh@163.com
 
 
 
 
Email   assistivetechnology@who.int
Equipping, enabling and empowering
Preferences   |   Unsubscribe  |  View this email online

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp