Clark is a Houston firefighter who is recovering from a Traumatic Brain Injury that he suffered in 2017 as a result of hurricane Harvey. Due to this injury, he has ongoing problems with his memory and significant issues with his vision that make activities of daily living challenging. Though he has had physical therapy during his recovery, he has experienced extreme frustration with the inability to use his smartphone because of his vision and memory issues.
Clark came to BridgingApps looking for technology support and possible solutions to help him relearn his smartphone and explore other available technology solutions that might help him become more independent. He has been working with BridgingApps digital trainer, Jana Rodriguez, who has helped him learn the accessibility features already built into his phone. By showing him some options for making the home screen and the font bigger, Clark has been able to navigate his phone much more independently. He also experienced frustration with typing, so during his visits to the Assistive Technology lab, he was able to try out different kinds of styluses as an option for using his phone when he needs to type out longer phrases and sentences.
It was also suggested that Clark could benefit from a different kind of keyboard to make his typing easier. Jana introduced him to Selvy Penscript, which is a keyboard add on app that allows Clark to write out letters with a stylus and it transforms it to text. He is absolutely thrilled with how this solution is helping him relearn how to spell different words and get his intentions into electronic form to communicate with friends and family. His other goals include learning how to use a Mac Mini, which is a device that is connected to a large screen in his home to help him with his vision. He is frustrated by his lack of knowledge of how to use this platform, so BridgingApps is training him how to use it while also supporting Clark’s goal of writing his own manual for how to use the device. Writing his own manual assists with his memory issues and practicing his newfound technology skills by repetition.
Clark and his family have been absolutely thrilled by BridgingApps’ expertise and ongoing support that will continue to aid in his recovery and help him become more confident and independent.