German Study Validates Life-Changing Effects of Assistive Technologies

A new study in Germany has confirmed that assistive communication delivers significant improvements in well-being for users with conditions like Lou Gehrig's disease, cerebral palsy, and autism, and their family members and caregivers, as well as clear economic benefits to society.

The research, conducted by Augur, showed that communication aids have a positive impact on physical and mental health, social relationships, and living environment. A similar health economic study in Sweden last year confirmed the positive impact of assistive communication for users, their networks, and Swedish society.

Like the study in Sweden, the German research shows that overall quality of life is almost doubled< among users with a communication aid. Among the main benefits expressed by users in Germany were the following:

• 78 percent feel they can express their own desires and preferences;
• 70 percent feel encouraged to communicate; and
• 66 percent feel they can go beyond expressing basic needs.

These benefits are deemed to bring greater independence, participation in society, and substantially improved quality of life.

The research also found that assistive communication can save German society the equivalent of almost $13,000 per user over five years in increased ability to work, decreased use of healthcare resources, and decreased sick leave.

The study confirms that assistive communication brings improved understanding between users and their close networks, including family members and caregivers. Among the main benefits expressed by caregivers were the following:

• 78 percent can better understand and meet the user's needs;
• 72 percent feel that the user is less dependent on them as an interpreter; and
• 68 percent express less guesswork in communication, leading to fewer misunderstandings.

As a result of this, nearly half of the caregivers say they feel less worried about what the user wants or needs when communication aids are used.

"The health economic study in Germany shows that assistive communication is truly life-changing for people with disabilities, empowering more people to work, and saving significant costs for society. By commissioning this research, we wish to raise awareness of assistive communication and improve regulatory access to communication aids," said Marcel Porcedda, regional manager of Tobii Dynavox in Germany.

"The ability to express one's thoughts and feelings is a human right. As a national organization supporting young people with disabilities, we see that assistive technology is vital to help children and adolescents to be included in life and participate actively in daycare, education, and transition into work life. It helps relieve parents and siblings to be able to focus more on work or school as the children are more independent, which can also reduce unemployment and save costs for society. This health economic study clearly shows that there are both human and economic reasons for making communication aids available for more people in need," said Christiana Hennemann, head of rehaKIND e.V in Germany.