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Teisia and Logan AT Lab Coordinator
Clay Christensen |
Teisia Mortensen nearly died in September, when she was found unresponsive. Her brain was without oxygen for long enough that professionals wondered if she would survive, let alone recover. It was a
terrifying time for her mother, Michelle Simpson, who feared she might lose her daughter.
But Teisia defied the odds, first by surviving and then by
speaking, eating and gradually regaining some of the movement she had lost. The
recovery exceeded the expectations of health care professionals, and
Michelle began planning for the time Teisia would come home.
The prospect brought up a whole new list of questions--issues the
Utah Assistive Technology Program is now helping her answer. For
example, how could she prepare her home to receive her daughter? What
wheelchair would work best for Teisia's needs? And what about mealtimes? While
Teisia had tried adaptive silverware, it was still a struggle to feed herself,
or take a drink of water without help.
"All the sudden your whole life changes," Michelle
said. "Until you walk in those shoes you don't realize that there are
people out there needing the help, or that there are places like this offering it."
While the Internet has information on assistive technology, or devices that help people with disabilities gain independence, even Google
couldn't offer the advice Michelle needed. "When you only know a little, you
don't know what to google."
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| Teisia tries out an adapted bowl and spoon. |
They came to the Logan
Assistive Technology Lab, where they met
with coordinator Clay Christensen, volunteer Mike Stokes and home health care
and wheelchair providers. They evaluated Teisia's needs, showed her a couple different types of motorized chairs and specialized cushions to go with them, and tried out some
different types of adapted silverware. They and fashioned a wedge that would hold an
adapted plate on her lap. Stokes attached Velcro to the bottom of the plate and sewed some to the wedge's fabric cover so that it would stay put while in use.
As for the adapted spoon, Christensen said, it started out as an ordinary piece of silverware. Then it was bent in a vise until it was the right angle for Teisia. (Adapted silverware online often runs for $15 apiece, and people who are unable to try before they buy may go through several versions before hitting on the right one.)
"This will work better than what I have right now,"
Teisia said.
"It's
amazing, eye opening. I have so many different words I could use," Michelle said.
Now that she knows, she wants everyone to know. Meanwhile she took home information on inexpensive assistive technology and financing through the
Utah Assistive Technology Foundation.
"I had no idea there was a place like this in Logan," she said.
