If you are reading this, welcome, my first
attempt at writing a blog. As an Occupational Therapy student we are often
asked to try new experiences, so this will be yet another notch on the
proverbial therapeutic belt. I should briefly explain my blog name, its no
secret…. the age old “what’s your porn star name?” Substitute your first pet's
name with the name of the street you grew up with and there you have it!
(Should you wish to see a photo of said Snicklefritz please view profile pic).
My first entry is focused on Information
Technology (IT)/Information Communications Technology (ICT). Yadav (2006)
defines IT as a generic name for the following functions; information/data
representation, storage, retrieval and processing, and communication. The
computer is the tool we use today to carry out these tasks as effectively and
efficiently as possible and with increasing speed as technology advances. ICT
is similar to IT but includes telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless
signals) such as computers, broadcast media and video and audio processing. So
that is any product that will store, retrieve, manipulate, transmit or receive
information electronically in a digital form.
To say that technology is not prevalent in
modern industrialised society would be insanity; it is everywhere you look even
if on occasion it is invisible to the naked eye. The rapid expansion over the
last 20 years of communication and personal digital assistant (PDA’s) devices
is phenomenal, and the market competition is incredibly fierce. Watch Steve
Job’s talk about the development of Apple’s post personal computers products
here; (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3QBw0QMzWU&feature=related); a
genius in his own right and a truly inspirational speaker on entrepreneurship
should you ever come across a video. In the first 9 months of Apple’s iPad
release in 2010 over 15 million units were sold, that’s $9.5 billion in
revenue! It often reminds me of the arms race you find in nature, the prey
(technology) is constantly trying to evolve greater strategies to stay ahead of
the predator (human race). But I guess it’s more of a supply/demand scenario.
The following video is a clever account of the evolution of technology,
although it is 4 years out of date; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcSzqm5Whwc&feature=related.
I personally do not own any fancy gadgets, its
not that I don’t want too it’s more of a financial restriction for now. I will
admit to being a bit of a feature and design snob, its got to look sexy first
and foremost and then be user friendly before I would consider purchasing it. I
would buy an Apple iPhone 4s in a heartbeat if I won Lotto. My laptop is an old
Dell inherited from my father’s workplace, it is sworn at daily for its slow
processing capabilities and one day I will put a sledge hammer through its
screen. But for now it serves its purpose and I don’t want to upset the
technology karma gremlins.
Technology is becoming such an important part
of everyday life that as of 2011, Occupational Therapists have a new assessment
available to them in order to gauge the ability of some clients to manage the
use of everyday technologies (Malinowsky, Nygard & Kottorp, 2011). But
while for some technology may be a hindrance or safety issue for others it is a
way to reconnect with family and society. I was fortunate enough to work with a
supervisor on my first placement who was technologically savvy. One client in
particular while I was there received his new iPad, which once attached to his
wheelchair enabled him through a touchscreen and the use of interactive
Prologuo2Go app to communicate effectively for the first time since his stroke.
The following blog gives one woman’s account with her experience with this
device and application, and how it helped her cope with cerebral palsy;
http://www.doitmyselfblog.com/2010/the-ipad-as-an-affordable-communicator-initial-review/.
I personally think as OT’s we cannot ignore the technology that could be yet
another effective tool or enabling agent in the problem solving process. At the
same time we must be mindful that not everyone is technologically aware or
comfortable enough to use this equipment in which case education or alternative
methods may be more suitable.
The final consideration for this blog and IT
will be the ethical implications that arise from the capturing, sharing and
transferring of information via PDA’s. Illegal downloading is recently been
heavily targeted both in the media and in the courts, but copyright and
intellectual property is something that should be respected when accessing
information via the internet. The problem arises however when information
starts crossing international borders and therefore differing regulations. This
is clearly obvious when we look at the current Kim Dotcom saga. As OT students
any photos taken while placement required informed consent from not only the
organisation we are working for but if they include clients, then the clients
as well. Quite often there will be strict guidelines to when and where they can
be used and they certainly wouldn’t be put on the internet where anyone could
copy and share it.
References:
Malinowsky, C., Nygard, L., & Kottorp, A. (2011). Psychometric
evaluation of a new assessment of the ability to manage technology in everyday
life. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 18, 26-35.
Yadav, D.S. (2006). Foundations of Information Technology. 3rd
Edition. New Age International (P) Ltd, New Delhi.
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