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When Good Tech Goes Bad (The best and worst of assistive technology)

 It cannot be denied that my forty years on this planet wouldn't be the same without some important assistive technology. I am independent because of an electric wheelchair, a free standing hoist, and a very special automatic front door just to name a few of my assistive devices. Advances in technology have allowed me to have lighter, more portable ramps for easier access; voice activated software from my laptop to smartphone has enabled faster and simpler communication. My life is living proof of the power assistive technology has to a person with a disability but what happens when good tech goes bad?

My wheelchair is my only access to mobility and in the past when something went wrong it was quite often a simple mechanical fix that my dad could perform. Now my chair runs on a computer software program which does allow for increased capability of the chair but when it breaks down there is no simple fix. Error warnings with convoluted number systems will pop up and instantly immobilise a chair which has led to many anxiety filled moments in the centre of town. 

I have even missed work because I was waiting for a technician to come out and plug their device into my wheelchair to fix the problem. There has been times I have been sitting watching a movie and the wheelchair will start cycling through speed profiles without me even touching a button and then there are the numerous times I have been halfway home from the shops, gone over a bump, and been abruptly halted when the breaks slams on for no reason. It is a fact that I am always grateful for the mobility that my wheelchair gives me but I believe that many pieces of assistive technology would be more useful if more time was given to the trial period especially when it comes to something as important a wheelchair. Two one and a half hour practice session before you purchase a chair is not enough to highlight any potential problems. 

I would not be able to get of bed, into my chair, and back again without my hoist but let me tell you there is not much scarier than the hoist stopping while you are literally hanging in mid air. The acrobatics my carers and I have had to perform just to get me safely on the bed when this happens has made me cry and laugh. 

This blog post would not be complete without talking about the terror of the blackout! Which is always punctuated with the quiet hiss of my air mattress deflating followed by my crazy prayers to the power gods that it will come back on before my legs and butt start to hurt. 

Overall assistive technology empowers my life and is not a toy but I will always break into a sweat when good tech goes bad.



Not a Toy


Do I control assistive technology or does it control me?

When I am driving my wheelchair down a nice smooth footpath, 

I am grateful and glad but then I freak out when all of a sudden

The good tech goes bad.


When the error sign flashes on the screen,

Sometimes I just want to throw it in the ditch 

Because I can't power through a software glitch.


I love that I can open my front door with a push of a button 

But if the motor strips a gear I am trapped inside unless someone else is near.


Assistive technology activates my voice until I am left dangling in the hoist.

I loved fast cars ever since I was a little boy 

But now technology gives me life and it's not a toy. 


Chris Van Ingen | 11 March 2022

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