Schwanke Todd D, Smith Roger O
Rehabilitation Research Design and Disability (R2 D2) Center, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, USA.
Work. 2005;24(2):195-204.
Successfully documenting the outcomes of assistive technology (AT) interventions in the workplace benefits people with disabilities, service providers and agencies. However, no work related system currently exists that comprehensively collects the data needed to analyze such outcomes. Part of the reason for this absence of an outcome system is that, while the concept is simple, the process is complex and depends on the acquisition of data that represent many outcomes related variables. This article describes the exploratory work of the NIDRR (National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research) funded ATOMS Project (Assistive Technology Outcomes Measurement System) and its efforts to identify existing data that might be used as the basis for an outcomes measurement system. Sample records from four assistive technology service programs were acquired and evaluated for the data they housed. This study discovered that AT service programs fail to collect consistent or sufficient data for outcomes analysis. However, discussions with AT programs that provided services to State vocational rehabilitation agencies revealed an interesting potential. Assistive technology service data in combination with data collected by State vocational rehabilitation departments might coalesce the needed data. The Federal Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) 911 Report aggregates many variables of outcomes related information including employment status and the success of the vocational rehabilitation investment. This combined database could answer a range of assistive technology outcomes related questions of interest to service providers, people with disabilities, and vocational rehabilitation State agencies. This paper describes the data needed in an outcomes system, reviews the data that appear to be available today related to AT outcomes, and projects how data from two diverse programs might be used together to create a significant outcomes database.
成功记录工作场所辅助技术（AT）干预的成果，对残疾人、服务提供者和机构都有益处。然而，目前还没有一个与工作相关的系统能够全面收集分析此类成果所需的数据。缺乏成果系统的部分原因在于，虽然概念简单，但过程复杂，且依赖于获取代表许多与成果相关变量的数据。本文描述了由美国国家残疾与康复研究所（NIDRR）资助的辅助技术成果测量系统（ATOMS）项目的探索性工作，及其为确定可能用作成果测量系统基础的现有数据所做的努力。从四个辅助技术服务项目中获取了样本记录，并对其中包含的数据进行了评估。这项研究发现，辅助技术服务项目未能收集用于成果分析的一致或足够的数据。然而，与为州职业康复机构提供服务的辅助技术项目进行的讨论揭示了一个有趣的潜力。辅助技术服务数据与州职业康复部门收集的数据相结合，可能会整合所需的数据。联邦康复服务管理局（RSA）911报告汇总了许多与成果相关信息的变量，包括就业状况和职业康复投资的成效。这个综合数据库可以回答服务提供者、残疾人以及职业康复州机构感兴趣的一系列与辅助技术成果相关的问题。本文描述了成果系统所需的数据，回顾了目前似乎可获得的与辅助技术成果相关的数据，并预测了如何将来自两个不同项目的数据一起使用，以创建一个重要的成果数据库。
