HOW TO HELP

Change by Design

How can America more fully realize the potential of people living with disabilities? Microsoft posed this question to guest essayist Andrew J Imparato, president and CEO of the American Association of People with Disabilities.

Twelve years after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, its promise of equal employment opportunity remains unfulfilled. The vast majority of the nation's 35 million working-age people with disabilities want to work, but only half are actually employed — about the same number as when the ADA was passed.

While the law has begun to remove some long-standing barriers, it cannot easily undo centuries of prejudice and the effects of organizational inertia. America's underemployment of people with disabilities costs the economy hundreds of billions of dollars a year in lost earnings and tax revenue. It is an enormous waste of talent and skill.

But prospects for real change are better today than ever before. Barriers that prevent all Americans from realizing their full potential are falling, thanks to advances that make technology more accessible.

Technology can be a workplace obstacle unless accessibility is built in. For example, the personal computer offered many benefits when it first emerged as a productivity tool, but it also increased the need for visual acuity and keyboard dexterity when performing many jobs. So Microsoft and many other technology companies began working to ensure the accessibility of their products. Also they partnered with a growing ecosystem of companies to develop new software and devices specifically designed to assist people with disabilities.

Technological progress has been phenomenal. Today, screen-reader software converts computer text into speech for people with visual impairments. Puff sticks and other assistive devices enable people without fine motor skills to use a PC. Improvements in speech recognition software will soon enable people who are deaf or hard of hearing to participate in meetings by using a laptop instead of a sign-language interpreter.

Accessible design not only benefits people with disabilities; it benefits every user. For instance, voice recognition technology that was pioneered for blind people is proving a boon for drivers who want gadgets that respond to voice commands.

Many employers are not yet aware of all the technological innovations that have made it reasonably simple and inexpensive to accommodate potential employees who are among the one in five Americans living with a disability. Employers who make the effort, however, can reap a competitive advantage from drawing on an often overlooked pool of highly motivated workers. With today's technological tools, the promise of the ADA can be realized.

Source: Microsoft's Agenda for Innovation

Universal design: Why ever not?

By Mary Jo Peterson

A grass-roots movement promoting the concept of visitability is spreading across the country. Simply put, visitability calls for every new or remodeled home to include one level entry (no steps or thresholds) with doors and passageways generous enough to allow wheelchair access throughout the first floor, including a bathroom. Not universal but, as promised, visitable. Today, in at least a dozen states, towns and municipalities, variations on this theme have been adopted as mandatory or encouraged through incentives. While it's a step in the right direction, I know we can do better.

Universal design is not simply a physical solution to a medical challenge. Rather, it is the design of products and spaces that anticipates future needs in the life span of a home and its residents. It's not medical, and it's not just a solution. It's beautiful, and it eliminates problems, at least those caused by inconsiderate environments. Universal design does not focus on the very tall or the very short, the person who uses a wheelchair or the person whose hands are affected by arthritis, the person who is 7.5 years old or 75 years old. It does, however, embrace each of these people as possible users of a space (or product), and it eliminates bias against them. Universal design in our kitchens and baths is flexible and integral to the personality and beauty of the space that we live in. In short, it's just good design, which begs a question: Why not incorporate universal design into every kitchen and bath product?

One answer that I read recently in the news came from a prominent builder. He claimed that incorporating universal design into every home was not a great idea because people prefer to buy new and that staying in the same home for a lifetime would be like keeping an old car past its prime. This point is interesting — and true for some, I'm sure — but don't mention it to the AARP. More than 80% of their surveyed members repeatedly confirm they want to stay in their home. And don't mention it to the remodelers standing in line to take the CAPS (certified aging in place specialist) training being offered by the NAHB Remodeling Council.

Rather than moving from a home when the kitchen range needs replacing, how about converting to a cook-top and building an oven into the nearby tall pantry or broom closet at a height that eliminates bending? And while you're at it, convert the space that's below the cook-top to rolling storage so that you might have the choice to sit or stand when cooking.

A second answer that I often hear from hesitant builders and homeowners is that universal design is too expensive. In fact, the kitchen and the bathroom are two spaces where this statement is rarely true. Whether designed with custom or stock products, kitchens and baths are always customized to suit the people who will use them. Incorporating flexibility and support for possible changes in the users over the life of the home is simply one more criteria.

For example, converting the standard tub in one bathroom of a home to an oversize shower might decrease the cost of new construction, and designing that shower to incorporate a place to sit and a rail for support can be fairly inexpensive. Where the tub is a priority, organizing the bathroom to allow for an extension of the deck at the head of the tub, or selecting a prefab unit that includes this space, will provide a resting place and safer entry/exit for anybody who uses the tub, with minimal added cost. Having a grab bar costs more than not having one, but it's time we thought of grab bars as essential. A sink is lovely, but without the faucet, it's not much use. Similarly, the tub or shower without the grab bar ... you get the picture.

A second point on the question of costs: Our manufacturers are demand driven, so if we wish to reduce the cost of an item and increase its availability, we need to ask for it. Five years ago, my favorite appliance manufacturer assured me we would never see front-loading clothes-washers, except for some European products. Guess what? Today, they abound.

The last argument against universal design is the toughest to deal with, and it goes like this: "I don't need it. I'm not frail. I don't want to acknowledge my age, and besides, it won't look good."

First, I respond that this design integrates beauty and function, and it must succeed at both or it fails. Universal design enhances the appearance of the space, or it's not good design.

A product designer that I admire talks about design and art, explaining that "there will always be a place for things of beauty (art), ... but within the realm of the built environment and the manufactured world, consumers have a right to expect their unique needs will be met by design." In current fashion, for example, the stiletto heels that are so incredible to look at are truly art, but as a woman attempts to function while wearing them, the shoes do not meet her needs and so fail the design test. Put another way, those of you who would rather spend money on Botox injections than on grab bars might do well to reconsider. Place those stiletto heels on the mantle, buy beautiful mules, and look a little harder to find good-looking grab bars. They do exist; I've seen brushed-pewter grab bars in wave shapes that enhance the water theme in a bath, meeting the required aesthetic and the required function.

Our unfortunate cultural fear of aging and physical changes is often at the heart of the argument. To this I say that universal design helps to level the playing field and lessen the dependence we fear. Sometimes, incorporating universal concepts into a kitchen or bath design requires more selling finesse than design skill. For some homeowners, the no-threshold shower is simply a beautiful design detail, and the fact that it makes entry and exit safer and easier is simply an added benefit. For others, the cleverness of a rolling recycle bin appeals, especially a bin that fits under the cooktop and can be moved as needed, sometimes providing a seated work area without a loss of storage space.

In the end, universal-design concepts can't be reduced to a simple checklist. We need to think to design, not just meet written requirements. For example, a raised dishwasher, which cuts down on bending and improves access, is a great concept, but it can be used only when it fits the overall design. At the end of a run of base cabinetry, it can be wonderful, but a raised dishwasher in the middle of a continuous work surface is not ideal. A good designer thrives on throwing all the facets of a project — the budget, the available space, the existing conditions — into a pot with the clients' wishes and strategizing to create the best plan, not just the meeting of requirements or guidelines.

With all of this sound reasoning and logic, I'm hoping right now that you, like me, are saying to yourself, "Universal design: why ever not?"

Source: Fine Homebuilding, December 2002

Caregiver Stress Test

What is it like to be a caregiver? Most family care givers probably never expected to be caring for a person who is sick or has a disability. Many also serve as advocates and often case-managers for their loved one. As caregivers, they want to ensure that their loved one has a meaningful quality of life. Just as the care recipient has special needs, so does the caregiver. Caregivers and care recipients need to work with each other in a respectful relationship. For that to happen, the conditions must be right. Both need support and often caregivers need training. Also, our government needs to be responsive to the concerns of people who have special needs and their caregivers. This includes providing adequate benefits and not cutting home care and other human services. Get involved in state and national care giving issues. Together we can make the system work and keep our loved ones at home ... where we all belong.

Score the following statements as seldom true, sometimes true, often true, or usually true. If the response to one or more of these areas is usually true or often true, it's time to begin looking for help and getting help in taking care of yourself.

• I can't get enough rest.
• I don't have enough time for myself.
• I don't have time to be with other family members besides the person I care for.
• I feel guilty about my situation.
• I don't get out much anymore.
• I have conflict with the person I care for.
• I have conflicts with other family members.
• I cry every day.
• I worry about having enough money to make ends meet.
• I don't feel I have enough knowledge or experience to give care as well as I'd like.
• My own health is not good.