La rápida evolución de la Inteligencia Artificial (IA) plantea oportunidades y desafíos significativos para colectivos históricamente discriminados, como las personas con discapacidad intelectual. Este artículo propone un marco conceptual que permite abordar el diseño de sistemas de IA generativa desde una perspectiva inclusiva y accesible. A partir de una revisión exhaustiva de fuentes legislativas, sociosanitarias y tecnológicas, se definen y relacionan conceptos clave como discapacidad, accesibilidad y usabilidad, profundizando en la discapacidad intelectual como objetivo central de este trabajo. Se destaca la necesidad de aplicar principios del Diseño Universal (DU) y del Diseño Centrado en el Usuario (DCU) para garantizar productos, entornos y servicios comprensibles, utilizables y personalizables. Finalmente, se identifican retos específicos en el desarrollo de herramientas de IA generativa en español dirigidas a personas con discapacidad intelectual y se proponen recomendaciones concretas para promover una IA verdaderamente inclusiva.24 p.
Empirical studies on health care utilization by people with disabilities are rare in South Korea. There exist even fewer studies that examine health care utilization by people with intellectual disabilities and that compare the health care utilization pattern by this population vs by population with other types of disabilities. This study investigates the characteristics of people with intellectual disabilities (vs those with non-intellectual disabilities) and evaluates the relationship between the presence/absence of intellectual disabilities and health care utilization. The present study analyzed the 2005 and 2016 Korea Welfare Panel Study data. The final sample included observations from these two years that span over the ten-year period. Health care utilization was operationalized by whether the people with disabilities (intellectual and non-intellectual) participated in health screening, how often they received outpatient physician visits, and how long they received inpatients service. To examine the effect of the types of disabilities on health care utilization, random-effects logistic regression and negative binomial regression models were employed. The present study found that people with intellectual disability showed a much lower attendance rate than both people with non-intellectual disabilities and people without disabilities. The percentage of those who received outpatient service experience was higher for people with non-intellectual disabilities than for people with intellectual disabilities. The mean annual number of outpatient visits was greater for people with non-intellectual disabilities than for people with intellectual disabilities. People with intellectual disabilities also showed a lower rate of inpatient experience compared to those with non-intellectual disabilities. Based on these results, it is suggested that policy-makers should promote fuller access to the use of health care services for people with intellectual disability. In addition, more efforts should be made for people with intellectual disabilities to participate in medical research so that they can express their demands on health-related issues.
According to the World Health Organization, the rights of persons with disabilities (PwD) worldwide are limited by social and physical barriers that prohibit their full participation in society. Built environment barriers can limit accessibility to transportation, goods and services, healthcare, employment, and overall independent movement. The Eastern Province (EP) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has about six per cent of its population designated as having some type of physical disability. Previously KSA-instituted rules and standards have not improved accessibility for PwD in the local built environment. This research attempted to determine the extent of accessibility in EP by surveying 183 persons with disabilities to ascertain what elements of the built environment are problematic for them and what they believe requires improvement. According to this survey, PwD felt elements that are essential to accessibility, such as ramps, elevators, restrooms, signage, and egress, are difficult to navigate. Commonly used public locations such as medical centres, restaurants, shopping, mosques, and banks each had obstructive elements that prevented PwD from fully using the spaces. Saudi Arabia is currently in the process of phasing in technical and social programs regarding the built environment that should improve accessibility for PwD, but current conditions are inadequate.
The design of the built environment greatly impacts how all types of individuals and populations actively participate in their daily lives. Lack of access in the built environment for disabled populations remains a daily reality, negatively impacting engagement and life satisfaction, leading to isolation, loneliness, and depression. A university in the Northeastern United States sought to expand current constructs of the end-user and environment within a universal design (UD) perspective. On an eight-month inaugural interprofessional collaborative co-design experience, third-year occupational therapy doctoral (OTD) students were embedded in a first-year masters of industrial design (MSID) curriculum, which ran the course of the academic calendar (two consecutive semesters: Fall and Spring). Primary aims wanted to determine, via an interrupted time-series quantitative design, if embedding OTD students within the industrial design curriculum influenced the MSID students’ prior assumptions, understanding of disability and enhanced their willingness to create more inclusive final products. Quantitative findings indicated that it was difficult to capture the meaningful change that occurred in the doctoral capstone program experience with the existing psychometric tools available. Anecdotal mixed-method findings indicated that informal interprofessional learning experiences in the classroom, such as lectures and learning activities created and facilitated by the OTD students and delivered in real-time, broadened and enhanced the MSID students’ knowledge surrounding disability and accessibility in a more nuanced way than the chosen quantitative survey tools were constructed to capture. A detailed literature review and description of the program have been provided, along with suggestions to capture meaningful outcomes for longer-term interdisciplinary collaborations.
: Accessible tourism goes beyond the physical dimension, associating services with sensory experiences, considering the specificities of people with disabilities. Birdwatching and birding by ear can be a good example of an activity that links visiting new places with outdoor activities. It can bring positive outcomes to the visitors through the benefits of being outside and connecting with nature, consequently, with ecosystem services; moreover, it can be an inclusive and accessible activity. Urban areas are increasing all over the world. In a sustainable context, green and blue infrastructures have received increasing attention in urban strategies. They create new habitats, contributing to urban biodiversity and, at the same time, providing many ecosystem services that guaranty well-being for the communities. The main goal of this study was to inventory and characterize the bird community in the urban area of Lagos, a touristic city in the South of Portugal. Birdwatching and birding by ear in the city could have the potential for an inclusive and accessible touristic activity. Three different sites along the city were sampled and a total of 35 species were sighted and identified. Some of these species could be identified through specific websites which describe the bird and give the respective bird singing sound. Most species identified were migratory, which increases the potential to sight different species through the year. The three sites' location has high potential to be integrated into accessible walking routes or tours, which increases the relevance of this study.
The purpose of this research is to install a handrail on sliding doors used in hospitals and nursing facilities to support the elderly and disabled to walk by themselves. Semi-automatic lifting equipment is utilised for the retractable handrail to make sure people in bad health are able to open the door using minimal force. This paper summarises ergonomic considerations to develop the product above. For example, the maximum opening force should be a certain value or less for the elderly and disabled to open the product effortlessly. Additionally, the initial opening force is required to be a certain degree for safe use. When the product is used as a handrail, the handrail is required to be stable and unshakable in opening or closing directions. The results obtained by having the elderly and disabled use the prototype demonstrated that it improves their walking abilities.
This article describes an exploratory research study assessing the level of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance and general accessibility of online information resources at a mid-sized, 4-year, public institution in the state of Ohio. A rubric, available freely online as a living document, was developed based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and web design best practices. From 2015-2016, the authors used the rubric containing 14 criteria (12 criteria from the WCAG 2.0, a criterion from Section 508, and a criterion related to universal web design best practices) to assess a random sample of online library guides (18 guides) at this institution. The authors found that the template developed by the administrator and used by all library guides at the study institution caused 70% of the applicable criteria to fail. The content contributed by individual library guide authors did not pass all of the criteria, but generally performed better than the template. Library guide author contributed content failed an average of seven rubric criteria. Many of the common library guide author errors in this study coincide with those reported by other institutions. Combining the WCAG 2.0 criteria with additional universal web design best practices criteria within the rubric eliminated most of the universal accessibility concerns that remained after applying the WCAG 2.0; a concern that had been identified in previous literature examining WCAG 2.0 applications to online information resources. It was concluded that the rubric was sufficiently comprehensive and that further exploration of its utility was warranted. This includes asking a heterogeneous group of users to assess the usefulness of the rubric by applying it to library guides outside of this study.
Currently, students consider the Internet as an efficient tool and technology and the Websites of universities play a significant role in their daily activities. Due to the increasing number of students with a disability, accessibility of these Websites is essential. Thus, in the current study, the Websites of medical universities of Iran were investigated to identify accessibility issues if any exists. The homepage of Websites of the medical universities of Iran was evaluated using the AChecker and FAE tools. Moreover, the web pages of each university were evaluated by FAE. To examine the differences in accessibility issues rate among three types of medical universities, Kruskal–Wallis test was performed. The results showed that all three types of universities have accessibility issues. Amongst 50 university websites, only 2 out of them did not display any accessibility problem based on Achecker tool. The score of FAE tool showed that the websites of all Iranian universities of medical sciences are in the NI-R category, which indicates that the accessibility has not been considered in the design of those websites. Moreover, according to Spearman's correlation test, there was a significant inverse correlation between the score of homepage and the number of known problems (P-value= 0.043). Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between the homepage score and score of other pages (P-value <0.001). The accessibility of medical universities’ Websites is not in an optimal situation, which severely affects the achievement of universities’ visions and missions concerning expanding medical education and improving educational equity. Therefore, it is necessary to make fundamental modifications in this respect. To do so, university, as well as web developers should pay special consideration to accessibility guidelines to make their Websites more accessible.
The importance of geographical space for persons with disabilities is elaborated in literature through numerous papers on ‘geographies of disabilities’, dealing with the social construction and impact of space. Space is identified as an enabling factor to enhance self-determination and independence e.g. in terms of social participation, mobility or access. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be utilized to visualise and analyse the spatial impact of human actions. Research on GIS applications for disability issues shows a variety of approaches through disciplines and topics but lacks a comprehensive assessment of potentials. The objective of this paper is to provide a synopsis of research results and practical approaches of GIS applications in disability-related contexts. Methods applied include a qualitative literature review of scientific papers, proceedings, projects and case studies using digital databases (e.g. ScienceDirect, JSTOR etc.). Based on the review an overview on target groups, core functionalities of GIS, the purpose of application was extracted. A SWOT analysis was used to stress strengths and weaknesses to identify gaps and future research areas. The review has shown that GIS for space-related disability issues is established in various disciplines with a diversity of topics. Focus is given to mapping and identifying accessibility, wayfinding tools supporting orientation and navigation next to disaster and emergency management support. Major constraints for the use of GIS are the availability, accuracy and costs of data, addressing single target groups/disabilities (e.g. users of wheelchairs) and the usability/transferability of applications. To exploit the full potential of GIS in disability studies, emphasis can be given to research on implementation of additional data sources, on integrating the inclusive approach by inter- and transdisciplinary research as well as on transferring good practice examples. The enhancement of GIS in disability studies can contribute to higher autonomy for people with disabilities and foster inclusion in our society.
The Measure of accessibility to urban infrastructures for adults with physical disabilities was first published in 2012 and proved to have good inter-rater reliability. Yet, the format (more user-friendly) and content (updated references and labels) of this instrument needed to be improved. Therefore, a new version, now entitled Measure of Environmental Accessibility (MEA), was developed to provide professionals and individuals defending the rights of persons with disabilities with a more user-friendly, objective measure of accessibility of exterior and interior urban infrastructures for adults with mobility, visual and hearing impairments. The aim of this paper is to present the improvements made in this new version and evaluate its inter-rater reliability. This cross-sectional study for inter-rater reliability was conducted by a student in occupational therapy and a student in architecture who performed 30 MEA evaluations of public infrastructures. Inter-rater reliability was evaluated using Gwet’s AC1 statistic. Most items (71%, 626/882) had AC1 values ranging from good to excellent. Some items had lower inter-rater reliability coefficients (12%, 108/882, p-value <0.05) and a few had non-significant coefficients (6%, 52/882, p-value ≥0.05). These items are distributed unevenly in the MEA. Thus, it is impossible to predict which items are less appropriate. Another 96 items (11%) did not have a Gwet’s AC1 value since both raters did not observe the evaluated element. The MEA is a reliable accessibility measure for urban built environments. Its new content and format make it a useful tool for individuals involved in the design or renovation of the built environment to improve accessibility and, therefore, inclusion of individuals with disabilities.
The accessibility of website images is influenced by the availability and accuracy of descriptive text and its compatibility with image complexity and purpose. Image accessibility evaluation cannot be fully affected through applying one method, and can be enhanced by inclusion of processes that consider the quality of image descriptive text. The evaluation of descriptive text quality may initially involve human evaluation, then use an automated evaluation tool to provide a counterpoint. In this paper, an analysis is presented of a dataset of 120 complex and informative images found on universities’ web-based systems. This is supplemented with a detailed analysis of HTML image attributes and elements. Human and automated analysis of content are combined and the integration of information to inform the evaluation outcome. Our analysis illustrates a lack of accurate usage of HTML image attributes and elements, such as alt and longdesc. The findings provide insight for the improvement of image accessibility by applying multi-evaluation methods and auto generator descriptive text. This paper will be of interest to web accessibility developers and researchers.
Out of 121 million population, 2.86 crore accounts for disabled people which 1.21% of total population. It has been reported that oral health care status of disabled people are poor than normal population. The main reason for this situation is barrier to access health care centres. This article throws light on definition and types of disability listed by Indian government. It also highlights the prevalence of disability and their oral health status. Article focuses on barrier in accessing dental care and guidelines required to build a disable friendly dental health care deliver center to make the treatment acceptable for such pupils. It is utmost important to provide dental care to such patients by overcoming the barrier to accessibility. Before motivating the patients and caregivers, it is the dentist who has to be motivated first in fulfilling special health care needs of patients resulting in improvement of quality of life.
A great deal of human-machine interaction depends on hands, and so does access to information technology services. People unable to use hands do require special devices that replace computer mice or touchscreens. In this paper, we present a building kit for a full-featured computer mouse that is controlled by head movements. The resulting kit includes an easy-to-find bill of materials, instructions to build the device and to use it. The experiments conducted with already built devices showed that it works pretty well for most people after a short period of adaptation.
Learners with physical disability in the western part of Kenya frequently make use of bus terminals during in the trip to and from school. Special schools attended by learners with a physical disability are few in number and far removed from the residences of most students thereby necessitating travel. Bus terminals located herein become obligatory points of passage for almost half of learners with physical disability in Kenya since seven out of thirteen special schools are located herein. This study, therefore sought to establish the accessibility of washrooms to learners with a physical disability whenever they made use of bus terminals. A cross-sectional survey design targeting 317 respondents who were sampled from a population of 1,525 was used. Data was collected through the use of questionnaires, technical measurements and observation schedules. It was established that washrooms in the study area enhanced spatial exclusion due to the presence of barriers at doorways and constricted washroom stalls.
In the past few decades, an increased interest in physical disability studies has developed. However, there is a lack of devices and innovations that allow disabled athletes to properly participate in Paralympic sports. In this work, a new, ergonomic swiveling seat used for Paralympic sailing boats has been developed and is compared to the traditional seating system. To increase the performance of the improved seat during a regatta race, a variety of innovative modifications have been introduced; the structural seat design has been developed through 3D simulation; a FEM (finite element method) analysis has also been presented to calculate the real stress and deformation ranges on the structure. Results show significant reduction in the weight of the seating structure, as well as an increase in the seat’s movement accuracy, in relation to the design and selection of the actuator. Furthermore, structural modifications make the swiveling system more ergonomic for most disabled users during sailing.
Caring for a child with cerebral palsy (CP) at home represents a major challenge and can have a significant impact on the caregiver’s physical and psychological well-being. Caregivers and professionals often feel uncomfortable with adolescents’ emerging behaviours. Adolescents’ need for privacy requires a certain level of independence to be achieved. However, the physical environment may cause problems in achieving the required degree of privacy. The main objective of this study was to explore and identify realistic, evidence-based solutions to promote independence and privacy in the bathroom for teenagers with CP. The authors used a two-stage co-design process: the conception of the design solution, followed by validation. The results of this project demonstrate the need to combine original technical aids and environmental settings to create a safe, hygienic environment for the user. The results can guide therapists in their clinical approach to designing washing facilities that meet the hygiene and psychological needs of other adolescents, adults and seniors with mobility impairments.
Although Universal Design (UD) was initially an architectural construct, the term is now used in a wide range of disciplines including education. Proponents believe that teachers trained in UD will be better equipped to meet the needs of the broadest range of learners through flexible curricular materials and activities. This comparative case study explores high school English teachers’ perceptions of UD aligned teaching practices and their influence on the teaching and learning of the same senior high novel unit: with one class using UD aligned practices and the other class using traditional methods. The findings of this study support the notion that the Universal Design construct may have the potential to develop the necessary talents of teachers to provide a wide range of students with greater access to the novel.
For a city to be inclusive, its physical environment needs to be identified, characterized and assessed prior to transformations and improvements. Such identification is the first step to impact on politics for citizens with impairments and functional limitations since environmental obstacles limits their social participation. The objective of this research was to develop a comprehensive and applicable information set for the description of the physical environment in support of the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities in Quebec City’s context. We developed a taxonomy based on the Human Development Model – Disability Creation Process (HDM-DCP). We reviewed documents containing nomenclatures with respect to the specific case of Quebec City’s physical environment. We organized the information under the original taxa of the HDM-DCP, this was carried out via an iterative process where elements of similar type were organized into a common level of one hierarchical branch under general categories. When categories linking objects to broader subcategories were not already identified, we expanded the structure by creating new sub-categories or hybrids. Applicability of the developed taxonomy was tested through field analyses and testing (photos of street sections) to determine whether it included all objects and infrastructures observed in the city. The resulting taxonomy was found to be useful in identifying/mapping elements of the physical environment. Both at the individual and collective level, it allows the identification of the elements that play a role in mobility, resulting in enhanced social participation or disabling situations for people with disabilities.
To create enabling environments for as many individuals as possible, including individuals with physical disabilities (IPD) who are more prone to encounter environmental barriers limiting their social participation, we need to examine current municipal practices related to accessibility. The objectives of this study were to describe existing practices for the design of accessible pedestrian infrastructures (API) for IPD living in Quebec (Canada), as well as to identify the perceived informational needs of the municipalities to design such infrastructures. A WEB survey was developed and validated by experts (i.e., municipal/provincial entities, IPD advocacy organisations, public transportation society, and researchers) and was sent to 507 municipalities. Descriptive statistics and recursive partitioning were performed, which allowed for the analyses of predictive variables using arborescence (e.g. the characteristics of the municipality that predict the implementation of various accessible design practices). A total of 186 respondents (representative of 184 of 507 municipalities) completed the survey (37%). Few municipalities have measures, resources and tools to ensure the design of API for IPD. However, many respondents perceived the need for such resources. The presence of an action plan for individuals with visual disabilities and their consultation, availability of human resources, and knowledge of tools for the design of API the implementation of other accessibility practices and should be targeted. Results of this study highlighted the need for conceptualization and implementation of guidelines to ensure API, and identified potential measures to improve practices that favor social participation of IPD.
The term accessibility is used in the context of providing equal opportunity to enter into an environment. Much is not known about the accessibility of tourist sites such as castles and forts to people with disabilities. This study sought to examine the accessibility of the Cape Coast and Elmina Castles to people with disabilities through a qualitative approach which involved in-depth interviews and photovoice to collect data. The study revealed that the castles are inaccessible. Though ramps, spacious pathways and handrails in washrooms existed, there was however, no mutual relation between the design of the castles and the concept of accessibility as defined by the Disability Act. The creation of awareness on the rights of the disabled to participate in the tour of castles can perhaps draw the attention of local government authorities and other relevant stakeholders to effect the necessary changes.
