Host:  Welcome to Independent Perspective, a public affairs presentation of Western New York Independent Living (WNYIL). Our guest today is Kimberly Naus, Director of the University at Buffalo’s Center for Assistive Technology (CAT) and your hosts is yours truly Ernie Churchwell. Welcome to the program Kim.

Guest:  Thank you for having me, Ernie.

Host:  And you have some exciting new technology for people with disabilities to discuss, but first you should mention that you're here under the auspices of trade and briefly what is that?

Guest:  Yes, TRAID is a federally funded programs with your New York state dollars going to work for you. And the acronym TRAID stands for Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities. And what it does is it enables people to increase their awareness and have access to the appropriate assistive technology that can either help them with daily living, with rehab, with their educational goals, or their employment goals. And it ends up helping them to increase, maintain their independence and their functional capabilities. And it's free to New York State residents, which is something that is so amazing. So, you can just call my line, which is 836-1350 and we can assist you with any resources you might need, we can demonstrate the device, and at the same time, you could borrow a device or two, sometimes people borrow 15 for two months. And it's by appointment only.

Host:  Wonderful. But, on to the subject of the day, and I must admit, this one has raised my curiosity you said you're going to be talking about a smart glove. Now that's not something I usually hear the two words together, just what does that do for people?

Guest:  It's actually the Rapael Smart Glove. And what it does, is it can assist people that have sustained a stroke or brain injury, and it turns therapy into a game. So, it's a rehab concept. There's motor learning that takes place. There's real time feedback. There's game like exercises as I mentioned, there's data visualization, it's lightweight, it's ergonomic, it's made out of real nice, elastomer material. It's wireless, and it's a sensor technology. What we've been finding is this is a great tool for therapists to access to work with their patients, but it's also can be beneficial for people in their homes that are trying to recover. And it's something that we are just in the process of purchasing. So, we're pretty excited about it. And if people would like to schedule an appointment to come and see it demonstrated, I think it would be very beneficial and we're looking into having the second set, so we can also loan it out. But at this point we have it for demonstration purposes.

Host:  I was just wondering, since this is going to be used for games and activities, I presume that people would need a computer to hook it to so they could follow gameplay and what's going on?

Guest:  Well actually it all comes in one, it either comes with an 18 inch screen, or an 11 inch screen that interacts and it's part of the smart glove kit. It is pretty pricey, but they do sell demo units, and they also do help with the justification of purchasing it that insurances are purchasing that Medicare and Medicaid. So, it is covered already which is really exciting also because that's always a hurdle to get over.

Host:  Well it sounds exciting and I'm sure you've raised a lot of questions among people listening, but we're running low on time if you'd be so kind as to repeat your phone number?

Guest:  Alright, my phone number to reach me is 836-1350. Thank you.

Host:  You're welcome and it's exciting to see that CAT is on the cutting edge, thanks for being with us.

Guest:  Thank you, Ernie, I appreciate it.

Host:  You've been listening to Independent Perspective, a public affairs presentation from WNYIL. Our guest today was Kimberly Naus, Director of the University at Buffalo’s CAT and your host is yours truly, Ernie Churchwell.