Chapter 2 Benefits of Assistive Technology

Modelling the impact of full access to assistive technology

Our analysis relies on a model developed specifically for this report that incorporates the best-available current data on AT need and the impacts of AT on users’ lives. Because there is insufficient research on disability and AT, data are limited on the potential health and economic benefits of AT, as well as the return on investment in AT provision. Therefore, for our model, we have taken the available data to draw further conclusions based on a set of assumptions (detailed in Annex A). For example, to date, most data relevant to the availability and effects of AT have focused on people with disabilities. Much of what we know about other groups of AT users (including older people, people with chronic health conditions, temporary injuries and diseases) is an extrapolation from this subset of the population. 8

We ground our analysis in three basic parameters: geographical coverage; selection of AT products; and timeframe. Our model focuses specifically on LMICs. The products included in the analysis are a subset of WHO’s ‘Priority Assistive Devices List’ and represent four of the five priority products to which ATscale aims to increase access: hearing aids, prostheses, eyeglasses, and wheelchairs. We analyse AT needs and benefits over the remaining lifetimes of the individuals in need of these four products today (the current cohort). (Please see Annex A for a more complete discussion).

Our modelling looks at the three benefits—economic, health, and social—of AT for the individual user, their families, and the societies in which they live. These benefits to users and those around them are distinct, but complementary, and mutually reinforcing. Our analysis traces the ripple effects of increasing access to AT to show how the benefits of AT access for an individual can have a positive impact on their families, communities, and entire societies.

Figure 3: Economic benefits of AT provision