The Magic Tap pumps the liquid contents out of containers that may be too heavy for some people to lift. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

Portage County’s smart home highlights assistive tech, remote supports

Portage County now has a smart home that is available for residents with developmental disabilities to explore.

The smart home is a fully functional automated home with controls for lighting, climate, entertainment systems and appliances. But this home also has remote support assistive technology and can be monitored, and partially controlled, remotely by support staff to provide assistance and care for residents.

The Portage County Board of Developmental Disabilities, in partnership with Envisage Group, have finished developing a smart home that is now available for visitation by members who would like to experience how assistive technology and remote support can help them live more independently at their own homes.

Christina West gives a demonstration of the Obi robotic arm, an appliance that can be programmed by a caregiver to automatically feed patients with restrictive arm movement. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

The home is outfitted with a variety of handy gadgets that can make life easier, such as robotic arms that can help feed people with mobility issues, alarm clocks that shake the bed for the hearing impaired, pens that can read books and food labels for the sight impaired, water spouts for milk jugs so they don’t need to be lifted and much, much more.

The two-story, three-bedroom home is also equipped with timers that operate the lights and blinds, sensors that can detect where someone is, if the water was left running or if the stove was left on.

In 2011, Ohio became one of the first states in the nation to get approved by the federal government to include technology to its home and community-based waivers. Since then, there have been several initiatives to emphasize expanding the use of innovative supportive technology for people with disabilities in the state of Ohio.

In 2018, Gov. John Kasich signed the Technology First Executive Order #5123-2-01, which opened the door for Portage County DD to advance its supports.

Some assistive technologies can be as simple as a device that unscrews food container lids. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

“We started promoting remote supportive and assistive technology back in 2018,” said George Winsen, director of service and support administration for the Portage County Board of Developmental Disabilities. “We only had one person using remote assisted tech in 2018. Now we’re up to 65, so we’ve grown. Compared to comparable counties in Ohio, our numbers are really competitive, even compared to a county like Summit [which has 71].”

The goal of the order was to familiarize people with developmental disabilities with new technology that can make their lives easier, as well as to help them gain independence. Progress of the order is tracked by the state to ensure that technology plays a part in service and support plans for Ohioans with disabilities.

This year, $3.2 million was allocated to the program for 2024-2025 to expand innovative technology grants and projects.

Assistive technology

Assistive technologies are interactive electronic devices or engineered solutions that help a person maintain an independent lifestyle and increase their functional capabilities.

Many assistive technologies, such as remote controlled lighting, can be implemented by a homeowner, or they can be controlled by remote support staff.

Remote support

Real-time virtual remote support is provided by staff members from a monitoring center through digital signal processing services. Remote support can include video calls, remotely controlling and setting sensors and timers, and more.

A major benefit of remote support assistive living technology is that it gives people the ability to live independently, without the help of in-person staff or a family member. It’s also a lower cost service option compared to in-person staff.

Remote monitoring includes the use of cameras that provide a link between a remote caregiver and a recipient. A remote caregiver can also remote monitor several aspects a home, like room temperature, smokes alarms and much more. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

Assistive living technology also excels at giving people privacy in their own homes. For one recipient of the program who had a difficult time getting along with caregivers, assistive living technology took the place of most in-home visits by caregivers.

“He just didn’t like somebody in his house,” Winsen said. “fSo, when he switched over to remote support, he had no incidents, no more behavior, and he really grew to be so independent; it was just an amazing change. It’s life changing for some people, and it was certainly life changing for him. Those success stories are what this is all about.”

While a fully equipped remote support assistive living setup might require video cameras to be mounted in various locations around the house to monitor activities or assist with activities, Portage County DD Service and Support Administrator Christina West said the program doesn’t have to be about monitoring patients at all.

The Reizen Talking Label Wand can read labels aloud for the visually impaired. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

“It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. There’s just a lot of assistive pieces that can benefit anyone,” West said. “I just bought a bed shaker for a lady. She’s going to college and she’s hard of hearing and she’s not going to hear her alarm, so I bought an alarm that shakes under her pillow, or under her bed, and it will wake her up so she’s not late for school. You can buy those off Amazon. She doesn’t have to rely on her mother to wake her up anymore.”

Remote support assistive technology can tie into every room of a house, but it’s particularly useful in the kitchen, where many of the more precarious daily activities take place, such as cooking, cleaning and food storage. While there are several kitchen gadgets that make everyday chores easier for people who are developmentally disabled, it’s the sensors and monitors that help keep people safe.

An ultrasonic electric toothbrush is a hands-free device that keeps teeth clean. Jeremy Brown/The Portager

“If you have a leak underneath your sink, or maybe somebody leaves the water running and walks away, it would notify you that there is water on the floor,” West said. “These are the kind of water sensors that set the temperature, so no matter how hot you want the dishes to be, someone can’t scald themselves. Those are all just important safety things that can really support someone living independently. When we talk about independent living, it is those safety issues.”

Beyond the kitchen’s safety sensors that monitor water temperature, leaks under the sink and turn the stove off when it’s left unattended, the available kitchen gadgets enable users to do activities that may have otherwise been too difficult.

One of the most useful kitchen technologies for the sight impaired is a food labeling system that requires a sticker of a specified color to be placed on a can of food, which can be scanned with a pre-programmed pen that audibly announces the contents.

If you’d like to learn more about the new smart home, you can visit the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities website at: https://dodd.ohio.gov/about-us/resources/tech-first/Technology-First/

Jeremy Brown
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