Pitt Researchers Receive Grant to Explore Wireless Technology for Those with Disabilities – UPMC & Pitt Health Sciences News Blog – UPMC

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We use voice commands forsmart devices in our cars,homesand offices to turn on lights, send text messages or call someone.For people with disabilitieswho require assistance completing daily activities,wireless technologiescanimprove their ability to control their environmentandquality of life but implementing these systems remains a challenge.

To help overcome these obstacles, the University of Pittsburgh has received a six-year,$4.6 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, through the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and the Administration for Community Living,to create a Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC).

Dr. Dan Ding

Many of the projects key investigators are affiliated with the Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL)a partnership between VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC.

Pitts School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences(SHRS)will host the RERC, to be namedPROMISE:Promoting Mainstream Wireless Inclusion through Technology Services.Researchers hopeto improve accessibilityandpromote mainstream wireless inclusion through technology services.

SHRSsDr. Dan Ding,an associate professor and researcher at the HERL, will bethe principal investigator.

This grant is a great platform for engaging diverse investigators and partners in implementing a holistic systems approach for addressing the challenges of wireless technology access and use by people with disabilities, she said.

Ding acknowledges that smart technologies are advancing at a much faster rate than regulations, reimbursement systems, clinician education and the capacity of people with disabilities and familiescankeep up.

Dr. Brad Dicianno

Joining Ding as the co-principal investigatorisDr.BradDicianno,a professor of physical rehabilitation and medicine at Pitt.Theywill taphighly qualifiedinvestigators with expertiseinengineering,rehabilitation training and funding/policy.Theresearcherswill also leveragetheirclose ties with providers, industryand disability organizations.

I am excited about this project because it brings together a fantastic team of people with disabilities, community organizations, investigators and other stakeholders, said Dicianno. The projects provide us with an opportunity to develop better service delivery models for wireless technologies.

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Pitt Researchers Receive Grant to Explore Wireless Technology for Those with Disabilities - UPMC & Pitt Health Sciences News Blog - UPMC