News from MassMATCH

For Peter G., assistive technology offers people with disabilities a game-winning Hail Mary pass; the problem is that more people need the chance to get in that end zone.

Pete in college with baseball bat and glove

Pete in college with baseball bat and glove

In 1988, Peter G. became disabled and had to withdraw from Bates College six weeks before his expected graduation. For the next eleven years, homebound and in bed, Pete relied on his parents for most of his needs, and experienced profound social isolation. As an avid sports fan, he said, "It felt like the game was over."

That was before he learned about assistive technology.

This past October, Pete won the AT Industry Association's AT video YouTube contest. His video, "My Assistive Technology (AT) Success Story," includes a reference to Doug Flutie throwing a Hail Mary pass from the 48 yard line. "This game is over," declares the announcer, before erupting, astonished, at Boston College's unexpected win. That moment, Pete explained in a recent phone interview, is a metaphor for his own experience. Learning about AT provided him that same transformative moment. Turns out it wasn't "game over" after all.

"I was looking for meal services, talking on the phone to MRC [the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission], when the man asked me, 'would you like a voice activated computer?' And I was, "Excuse me? Did you say 'voice activated'?!"

Today Pete uses multiple forms of voice activated technology. Pete has many of the limitations of a quadriplegic and the technology helps him be independent on a level that had previously been impossible. A Quartet Technology Environmental Control Unit (ECU) allows him to manage his living environment (hospital bed, lights, television, drapes, computer monitor); the voice recognition software Dragon Naturally Speaking provides him with comprehensive computer access. And computer access has enabled him to create a website for his family's business, write articles on AT for newsletters and magazines, and effectively tear down his social isolation.

"Before AT became a part of my life, I was merely existing," Pete calmly reports in his video. "Now, thanks to AT, I am truly living."

On the phone Pete admits that an important hurdle remains: finishing that Bates College degree. Until recently, Bates College didn't accept online course credits, his best bet for finishing those incompletes. "And until recently I didn't have the technology to follow through anyway."

His technology hurdle was a problem with Dragon Naturally Speaking. Dragon is powerful software that enables Peter's computer to respond to customized voice commands, providing a hands free operation that is nearly as efficient as conventional computer access. Dragon's principal weakness, however, is its tendency to freeze up. It's a problem that required Peter to reboot multiple times a day, over a hundred times a month, each time requiring help from his parents. "Under those conditions I couldn't really imagine signing up for online college courses or taking online exams," he explains on the phone.

In his video, Pete doesn't get personal. We don't learn much about his disability and he never mentions those unfinished college credits. "I didn't want to distract from the AT," he explained on the phone. "The AT is the point."

Indeed, the unique strength of his video is his demonstration of the innovative and pragmatic way he now gets around Dragon's weakness. Pete and his Easter Seals AT specialist, Eric Oddleifson, solved the problem by installing ViaVoice, back-up voice recognition software. Together they learned that ViaVoice can co-exist with Dragon in sleep mode when Dragon is operable. When Dragon freezes, Pete can wake up ViaVoice and use it, along with a HandiEye hands-free mouse emulator and a Logitech QuickCam, to reboot his computer and get Dragon moving again. "Now," he reports, "I need my parents, maybe, once a month." And, "Yes," he confirms, "I am researching online college courses."

Pete's video won the ATIA's Grand Prize: an all-expenses-paid trip to attend the ATIA 2009 Chicago Conference at the Renaissance Schaumberg Hotel and Conference Center. He also won the Member Physical Access/Mobility Special Interest Group Award: a $400.00 visa gift card. Pete was unable to attend the conference, but donated his conference winnings to the Easter Seals AT department.

The rewards for entering ATIA's contest go far beyond the prizes, however. Winning the competition was partially dependent on the number of views Pete could generate to his YouTube video. To help, Easter Seals spread the word, and the provider of his personal care attendant (PCA) sent an announcement on their listserv. Pete also got the word out through his Bates College e-zine, through Facebook to college friends, and through his father's fraternity brother network. "People were amazed by the technology. Many didn't know anything like that existed. I had over 300 hits from my college newsletter, and over 100 hits on the PCA network, all with similar comments. Even people working with people with disabilities didn't know much about AT."

Which, for the ATIA, is the whole point. "Since our inception 10 years ago," asserts Executive Director David Dikter in his press release, "the overarching goal of ATIA has been to educate and create awareness about assistive technology and the enhanced benefits and opportunities it brings to people with disabilities."

But for Pete, AT is really much more. It turns Game Over to a game-winning Hail Mary Pass. "It's what motivates me. To help more people achieve unexpected success."

Learn more: Read Tips from Pete at the Easterseals-MA website. To view Pete's video as well as the 28 other video contest entries visit this ATIA video contest web page.