WeThe15 scoops European Award
20/12/2021
WeThe15, the campaign launched in August 2021 aspiring to be the biggest ever human rights movement to represent the world’s 1.2 billion persons with disabilities, has scooped a major European public relations award.
World’s first e-sport team of differently abled people fulfill their dream
06/12/2021
Permobil launched its partnership with the e-sports team Lilmix.Para – five young men who are living with disabilities. An important aspect for the team members, who all have the same severe muscle-wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), is being seen and heard, as well as realizing their dreams in e-sports.
Getting a driving license with the joystick
22/11/2021
PARAVAN GmbH was recently presenting its driving school for the first time at the German Driving Instructors' Congress in Berlin. In addition to the special needs and requirements of training for people with disabilities, the focus was set specifically on technical solutions for training. Not all people can simply sit in a normal passenger car and take the test there.
Assistive devices for people with sensory disabilities
28/10/2021
In the end, a good assistive device always means: more participation. People with sensory disabilities experience a different form of barriers every day – especially frequently in the area of communication. In our Topic of the Month, you can read about the aids that can help them use their smartphones without barriers, for example, or about the development of hearing systems.
World Cerebral Palsy Day – for inclusion and social participation
06/10/2021
I am here, we are here, and the world should know it – with this message, the World Cerebral Palsy Day on October 6 should not only draw more attention to the disease. It is also intended to raise awareness of the fact that there is still a lot of catching up to do in terms of the participation of people with cerebral palsy in many areas of society.
Mobile – thanks to car conversions
28/09/2021
Electric cars, e-scooters, and electric bikes – will our future be shaped by electromobility? Does this spell the end of the internal combustion engine? Or will we embrace alternative fuel vehicles that use hydrogen fuel for private transport? How will these new modes of travel impact the way we work? REHACARE.com addresses these questions in our current Topic of the Month.
Electromobility and autonomous driving: Where are we heading?
28/09/2021
After some initial hesitation, electromobility now seems to be picking up speed. We asked the German experts at AMF-Bruns and Sodermanns about the challenges of vehicle conversion. Aside from different drivetrain systems, PARAVAN continues to push the boundaries of automobility. REHACARE.com took a look behind the scenes.
Claudia Staudt – That's how she rolls
28/07/2021
Love is the most important thing, everything else is secondary – Claudia Staudt realised this when she adopted her daughter. Lenas disability was not the focus of attention at any time. She wishes that her fellow human beings would see it in exactly the same way. How she copes with difficult situations, what she is particularly grateful and how she otherwise rolls, she tells us on REHACARE.com.
Janine Kolbig – That's how she rolls
14/07/2021
Living a self-determined life is a matter of the heart for Janine Kolbig. She is the founder of the Centre for Self-Determined Living Northern Germany, which advises people with disabilities and represents their interests. What self-determination means to her, who the origin of this movement is for her and how she otherwise rolls, she tells us on REHACARE.com.
From puppy to assistance dog: the multifaceted work with animal helpers
29/06/2021
Assistance dogs are cute, no question. But they have many more advantages: they relieve their owners of work, support them and open doors – in the real and figurative sense. But how do affected people get an assistance dog, what can four-legged helpers do and who finances their training? Living and working with animal helpers is multifaceted, but must be better protected by the law.
Assistance Dogs: four paws are the key to active participation
29/06/2021
Society lacks education and awareness when it comes to assistance dogs. There are also no official uniform training standards and not even the term "assistance dog" (known as a service dog in the United States) is protected. REHACARE.com took a closer look at the obstacles people must overcome when it comes to the training and financing of this precious resource.
Service dogs: priceless four-legged helpers
29/06/2021
REHACARE.com spoke with two dog training centers and learned how much people with disabilities benefit from a canine companion in everyday life and discovered the type of training assistance dogs complete before they are matched with a person.
Better swallowing and understanding: Sophisticated aids from the field of speech therapy
15/06/2021
Some aids may play a minor role in life, but they make everyday life much easier. These include products from iuvas medical: on the one hand, the transparent mask miama, which makes communication in the pandemic clearer. On the other hand, the sippa drinking aid, in which the contents are kept constantly at the top by a membrane so that people with dysphagia can swallow more easily.
Making society more inclusive: with social commitment to greater participation
31/05/2021
Inclusion and participation – keywords that can evoke very different emotions. The fact is that much more needs to be done for an inclusive society. But there is no one right way. Because participation must be implemented in many different areas. Companies also play an important role in this context – and are already taking decisive steps in the right direction.
Corporate social responsibility: diversity is an asset
31/05/2021
Accessibility, participation, and inclusion are buzzwords associated with people with disabilities. The notion that we should focus on people’s abilities, not their disabilities is a lesson that is not yet fully understood by most - especially when it comes to labor force participation. We took a closer look at the role companies and their social responsibility play in spurring social changes.
Full participation: paving the way to an inclusive society
31/05/2021
Whether it affects cultural, political, economic, or social life – people with disabilities have a right to participation. This was recognized and stipulated in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. But how is society as a whole implementing this directive? How are inclusion and participation put into practice and what role do companies play in promoting diversity?
Rita Ebel – That's how she rolls
19/05/2021
Rita Ebel has become known as the "Lego granny": Since accessibility is still a scarce commodity, she designs ramps made of interlocking plastic bricks. Boxes of the colourful bricks are stored in her house and are transformed into ramps with creative patterns. Why she herself is dependent on accessibility, why she never loses her smile and how she otherwise rolls, she tells us on REHACARE.com.
Computer-aided communication: assistive technology promotes participation
29/04/2021
Whether it is voice recognition with or without eye tracking technology, educational or speech recognition software – assistive technology builds bridges that allow people to get in touch with their surroundings.
Building bridges - communication software in focus
26/04/2021
Communication is an important cornerstone for social participation. It is therefore all the more important that the communication aids that are available are adapted to the people who need them. In our Topic of the Month, you can find out who is responsible for this and what difficulties still exist today, but also what is encouraging.
Assistive devices in the workplace: Making communication accessible
26/04/2021
Especially for blind and visually impaired people, the lack of or non-working augmentative communication devices frequently means that they have no prospect of participating in the workplace. We discussed with Bruno Behrendt from Papenmeier why screen readers are sometimes nothing more than pretty tools and learned why technical support is THE perennial issue when it comes to customer service.
Head support system HeadUp Collar: Communication at eye level
22/04/2021
Head support systems for ALS patients are often not sophisticated and resemble neck braces. The University of Sheffield developed the HeadUp Collar, which can be individually adapted to the needs of the patient. REHACARE.com asked Anita Ogale, Product Manager at ProWalk, what makes the new head support system so special.
Functionality meets design: the new adaptive sport equipment Spike
29/10/2020
Activities aiming at occupational therapy and rehabilitation are boring? Not necessarily! A new assistive exercise and sports equipment named Spike is not only designed to be fun, but also suitable for everybody who wants to get and stay fit. How this works for whom and what kind of history connects Spike with REHACARE? We asked!
Pro Walk: Overcoming foot drop one step at a time
24/09/2020
Safe walking without tripping or falling is challenging for people with foot drop. Luckily there are technologies that provide active support by using functional electrical stimulation (FES). Pro Walk GmbH delivers these types of foot drop systems. How do these devices allow users to complete everyday tasks? REHACARE.com asked Nico Riedl, Product Manager and Physiotherapist at Pro Walk GmbH.
REHADAT Gute Praxis: "Labor force participation requires targeted and personalized measures"
31/08/2020
What are strategies for successful inclusion in the primary labor market? Many employers only have a vague idea of what this entails, revealing the importance of comprehensive and practical information. The new REHADAT Gute Praxis (English: Best Practice) portal aims to be their go-to resource – and includes 900 practical examples. Why are they especially useful? We asked...
Why inclusion is more important than ever amid the coronavirus crisis
25/06/2020
How are families of children with disabilities coping during the coronavirus crisis? A recent online survey asked this question, prompting over 1,600 participants to respond in just two weeks. What do the survey results reveal about the current state of society in terms of social participation and inclusion? We asked Dorothea Kugelmeier and Dr. Raimund Schmolze-Krahn, who launched the study.
Adaptive eating utensils with a Twist: How Bravo Twist by ProWalk outsmarts Parkinson’s tremors
17/10/2019
We all know that food intake is essential for the survival of every living organism. Yet for humans, food can also be a great source of pleasure or even love. At any rate, it is an important part of our social life. But what happens if our own body throws a monkey wrench into our food intake by having a stroke or neurological disorder?
SmAccLab: Smart auxiliary means for everyone
28/05/2019
Accessible and realistic – that’s how auxiliary aids should be in the eyes of Professor Carsten Zahout. Students at the Smart Accessibility Laboratory (SmAccLab) are working on technical solutions that fulfill these requirements and lead to increased participation for people with disabilities. REHACARE.com found out how product engineering and inclusion join forces.
fuelService app helps drivers with disabilities to refuel their car
18/04/2019
Your car ran out of petrol and you need support refuelling it? The new app fuelService is about to help you find a petrol station where you get the help you need. The app is for free and globally available. App founder Niall El-Assaad told REHACARE.com how it works.
"The DisAbility Talent Program connects employers and prospective employees with disabilities"
07/02/2019
Professional success with a disability or chronic illness – the DisAbility Talent Program aims to also support respective German students and new graduates in the near future. How is it planning to do that? REHACARE.com asked Daniel Schörghofer, who has been in charge of the program in Austria for several years as a DisAbility talent manager at myAbility Social Enterprise GmbH.
Self-determined living: careunities creates flat sharing for people with physical disabilities
24/01/2019
For many people, living in a shared accommodation is a matter of course. But how well does this work if you have a physical disability and require assistance? This is where careunities comes in. The online platform matches people up with future roommates and also plans to retrofit buildings for accessibility, thus creating more shared living spaces.
M-Enabling Forum: "The best assistive technologies cannot be useful if our digital environment is not accessible"
21/06/2018
Self-determined living needs accessibility. This does not only apply to step-free entrance for wheelchair users, but also for the digital environment. For example, when blind people surf the internet with a screen reader, they need web sites that are accessible. But reality often looks different. Reason enough for the M-Enabling Forum to focus on this topic at this year's REHACARE.
TTC Wheel-Trans: Accessible transport for people with disabilities in Toronto
17/05/2018
In Canada, the North Americans are far ahead of us Germans when it comes to accessibility. If you are a guest in Toronto, you not only have the possibility to travel with the usual public transport, but you can also opt for the 100 percent accessible alternative and use Wheel-Trans.
"At the TUECHTIG coworking space, people with and without disabilities are working together – and not just next to each other"
22/03/2018
Maximum flexibility to encourage ideas, effectively sharing office space: coworking spaces have become a part of many major cities. In 2017, Berlin featured about one hundred of them, but none of them were comprehensively accessible. That’s something Stefanie Trzecinski from KOPF, HAND + FUSS gGmbH wanted to change. That was the moment, the idea for "TUECHTIG – Raum für Inklusion" was born.