Technology and the needs of deafblind people

Abstract Technology has the potential to transform the lives of deafblind people. Yet there is a risk that they will be left behind in this rapidly developing field, unable to access the technologies developed for those with a single sensory impairment or for the mainstream population. Sense, the national deafblind charity, is conducting a survey of deafblind people, their families and support workers, to find out about their experiences of using technology in their everyday lives and their hopes and fears for the future. It has the potential to be the biggest ever survey of deafblind people in the UK. Deafblind people experience problems with mobility, access to information and communication. Without the right support in these areas people who are deafblind can become increasingly withdrawn, depressed and isolated. When combined with human support, technology has the potential to help in all three areas. With an ageing population, the number of deafblind people is set to grow and it is vital that their needs are not forgotten. The initial findings of the survey will be available in time to be presented at conference. They will reveal the problems that deafblind people experience accessing technology and what they want for technology in the future. This conference would provide an opportunity to present these results to the companies making accessible technology and the local authorities who are often responsible for funding the provision of technology to deafblind people, to try to ensure that deafblind people are not excluded from future developments.