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Ana Duarte

Activities

Father creates app for son to inform about accessibilities

So Carlos created an app called Eu Chego Lá (I get there). This app, designed to help wheelchair users and other disabled people to have information about the accesses of event places, restaurants, bars, hotels, malls, etc.

“We talked with the basketball team, in wheelchairs from Brusque, and did other interviews in Florianópolis. Basically, that sort of information doesn’t exist. They want to go out to grab a beer, or go to the theatre, and they just don’t know if that place has the conditions to serve them. So they always end up to go to the same places”, explained the father.

Amputee creates tv show about his own adventures

Daniel lost both of his arms and legs to meningitis when he was only five years old, but he’s a typical college student who he likes to play video games and party with his friends.

A year ago, the tv show creator met Fredrich Kroetsch of Open Sky Pictures. Now the two are working together to make the television series “Invincible,” which follows Daniel’s own adventures, as he engages in new activities and explores the challenges and triumphs people with disabilities face.

Adaptive clothing for wheelchair users

“It was then that I first became aware that there was a whole group of women who didn’t have access to the kind of clothing I made.” Through her connection to Turnbull, Camilleri learned about issues that people who use a chair have with clothing — putting items on and off, finding clothes that look good from a seated position but do not interfere with wheelchair mechanics, and fitting into fashionable choices that are suitable for the workplace”.

Diabetic patient invents glucose monitor kit

This is something to which few Type 1 diabetics in Britain have access – the monitors cost around £4,000 a year to buy and maintain and are too expensive for the NHS.
“I now have more information about my condition, so I better understand what I am doing. I feel more in control – and that is a massive improvement,” he says.

Teen illustrates books to deal with her condition

“I was born without ears. Well, I have ears, but they weren’t formed really well and then missing a bone somewhere around here, so I had a lot of surgeries in my life,” she said.

So far, she’s illustrated two books: “Wade the Turtle” and “Justine the Cat.” They tell the stories of people with disabilities and the daily challenges they face.

Haley’s mom, Leshia Anderson, said, “Kids would refuse to take her hand because of her differences and refuse to sit next to her on the bus.”

Website to help disabled people go out

“We thought that there must be thousands of people who have the same issues that we do so we decided to create a website to help others. Euan’s Guide is a friendly, honest & empowering alternative to hours of web searching and phone calls and most importantly remove the ‘fear of the unknown’ when visiting a venue for the first time”, Euan explained.

Despite being in a wheelchair, Euan wants to go out to bars, restaurants, hotels, cinemas, music festivals, sports grounds etc. But he found it hard to know which places had truly accessbile venues.

Mother develops custom designed hearing-aids for kids inspired by her son

Lugs' story began March 17, 2011, when Ivermee's son Freddie was born with congenital cytomegalovirus, which left him "profoundly deaf in one ear and moderately to severely deaf in the other," according to the Lugs website. He was fitted for a hearing aid for one ear when he was just 2 months old.

"We were expecting him to be completely deaf as the infection he had causes profound hearing loss so we felt blessed he had some hearing," Ivermee said.

Cane helps blind people recognize faces

Using smartphone technology, the device — known as the "XploR" mobility cane — can identify faces from up to about 33 feet (10 meters) away, researchers say.

If the cane recognizes someone, it alerts a visually impaired user by vibrating and transmitting a sound signal. The cane is also equipped with GPS to help the user navigate.

"My grandfather is blind and I know how useful this device could be for him," Steve Adigbo, one of the cane's developers and a student at Birmingham City University in England, adding,"There’s nothing else out there like this at the moment."

Diabetic girl invents backpack to manage diabetes

Having diabetes has changed her life, so now Anna has to be mindful of her condition and take blood sugar tests before she eats.

"I have to go to the nurse's office every day before I eat. And if I think I have low blood sugar, I have to go to the nurse in the middle of class and I miss a lot of stuff while I'm in the nurse's office."

Anna said her invention stems from how she felt when she was diagnosed with diabetes.

Fighting spinal muscular atrophy by skateboarding

The invention consists of an adaptation that was made on a cage with wheels that serves as support in treatments of that kind. Through a security vest and cable, the girl can be stuck standing on a skate with glued boots. Then, her father pushes her and rides along.

“I feel free”, Iris said about their parents' invention.

“The dream of skating with my daughter was present since she was born. We had the idea about the cage, a research center believed in our idea, and it worked”.

Pilot creates his own prosthetic

Steven was 18 when he was left critically ill in a bike accident with damaged lungs, spleen and liver, a broken leg and a severed arm. His right arm was torn off by another rider's footpeg during a collision.

Steven believes that a number of 'unique features' make his arm stand out: "I basically bought a milling machine and a lathe and started making components out of aluminium and putting them together.

Cancer survivor invents jacket for cancer patients

“As I laid there in disbelief, I thought ‘there needs to be a better way’ and if I could figure it out, it could be my giveback. The loss of dignity and control was devastating. Then I designed a jacket to hold all drains, provide one-handed dressing, reduce pain, and restore dignity and independence. I called it the “Jacki.” It was everything the hospital Johnny was not, incognito, classic style with many unique features”, explained Cathy.

Parents develop swimming aid for autistics

For most kids it's an easy solution - life vest - but for Harley that just wouldn't work. And when the life vest didn't work, the Johnston family inadvertently invented a swim aid for children with autism.

Paddler supports freestyle, breast-stroke, butterfly and back-stroke movements. Kids love Paddler because it is a fun, new and exciting application of their favorite pool noodle. Parents and swim instructors love Paddler because it supports more versatility for new swimmers.

Girl invents device to help seniors

“My now-deceased grandmother, Barb, had severe challenges and would have benefited greatly if iC LovedOnes had been available to her,” said Brooke. “It is rewarding to adapt my iCPooch technology to a simple, cost-effective and easy-to-use tool to help loved ones stay connected and cared for from anywhere in the world.”

Son creates therapy system for Parkinson’s and other diseases inspired by his father

The system is an activity tray that holds various modules of activities from magnetic puzzles to peg games to gardening trays to tasting boards. According to Silknitter, it has been compared to a Wii for older adults with a console (the activity tray) and games (the activity boards).

Silknitter’s father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1988, and then with Dementia. Scott never knew that his disease would be the springboard for a new play therapy system aimed at helping those with Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, dementia and developmental disabilities.

Man invents hands-free wheelchair for his friend

The wheelchair, called “Ogo”, is based on Segway technology, utilizing balance to control the movement of the hands-free wheelchair, which enables the user to move intuitively, more precisely and hands-free.

“The disabled are exactly like you and me, they all need freedom and excitement in their life. And Ogo takes that to a whole new level. It will go faster, it will go more places and is smaller and lighter than just about anything else. And the fact that you can operate it completely hands-free makes Ogo a definite game-changer”, said the inventor.

Cancer survivor creates wigs for cancer patients

Patient gift registry

Despite the devastating diagnosis, Diem decided to forge ahead and participate in Real World/Road Rules Challenge. However, after the show concluded, she experienced depression and a sense of helplessness; she was forced to deal with the impact of chemotherapy, expensive medical bills, and loss of her hair. She noted that when she went wig shopping, she was shocked by their cost. Thus, she was subjected to severe emotional and financial challenges. Friends and family came forward with offers of help; however, Diem did not possess the means to accept, organize, and keep track of the offers.

Flavorful food for cancer patients

Chef Michelle Bernstein, 46, from the USA, is creating a line of food for adults and children cancer patients receiving chemotherapy at Memorial Regional Hospital, where she was born. Her mother, who is struggling with lung cancer, inspired Bernstein’s idea.

3D Printed "spiderhand"

“I saw the immediate help I could provide to a friend. One of my football teammates, who is also my best friend’s brother, suffered a spinal injury a few years ago and he has been struggling to regain hand function ever since. One of the most memorable experiences, and a major motivation for this project, was when I went to give him a friendly handshake to say hello and all he could do was lift up his hand to offer a fist bump”, said Levy.

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