their overall quality of life, expedite their reintegration into society, and
improve their physical and mental wellness. ADL Company Inc. (ADL) and Virtual
Ability, Inc. (VAI) announced today the start of a project to establish best
practices and protocols for the provision of on-line peer-to-peer support
services to this community, with funding from the Telemedicine and Advanced
Technology Research Center (TATRC) of the US Army Medical Research and Materiel
Command (USAMRMC).
"For individuals with disabilities, virtual worlds are a powerful way to connect
with others, to access peer support, and to participate in activities that might
not otherwise be possible," said Alice Krueger, President of Virtual Ability,
Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. "This project will establish the best way to
adopt this technology for the unique needs of the military amputee community."
The Amputee Virtual Environment Support Space (AVESS) project will research the
peer support needs of the military amputee community and establish protocols and
prototypes for addressing those needs in a virtual environment. AVESS will be
developed by ADL and VAI, who are partners in the project.
"We have successfully used virtual world technology in a number of areas,
including as part of a long-standing project with the US Government (Joint
Medical Executive Skills Institute) through which we provide leadership training
to healthcare professionals in the Tri Services," said Doug Thompson of ADL.
"This project will further extend the use and understanding of virtual worlds
and establish global best practices. VAI is an invaluable partner on this
project: they have shown through example and experience how powerful virtual
worlds can be in their ability to support people with all kinds of disabilities
- physical, mental, emotional, and sensory." ...
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS92098+02-Nov...
