I thought you might be interested not just in the person but in the technology that is helping her, so I thought this worthwhile to forward. Cindy --- Louise <bookscanner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > From: "Louise" <bookscanner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> > To: "Louise Gourdoux" <bookscanner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> > Subject: Fw: Blind Doctor opens shop in Portland. > Date: Mon, 13 Mar 2006 14:08:17 -0600 > > > > PORTLAND, OREGON - In a few months, the newest > doctor - and one of the > first > doctors of her kind in the nation - will hang her > shingle in the Portland, > Oregon area. Chris L. Cooke will become one of the > first totally blind > doctors in the US with a specialty in naturopathic > medicine. > > The new Dr. Cooke, blind since birth, will carry > the usual medical > instruments in her black bag, including a blood > pressure cuff, a > thermometer, and a Pocket > PC crammed with medical references - a tool most > modern doctors rely on to > help with diagnosis, prescribing the right > medicine, and ordering and > interpreting > lab work. The difference is her tools of the trade > will talk. In fact, in > large part, she credits her ability to be a good > doctor to a > PAC Mate > T accessible Pocket PC for the blind and two > Oregon men who made medical > reference software accessible to the visually > impaired, using the PAC > Mate. > > The PAC Mate is the first and only accessible > Pocket PC that is founded on > mainstream technology. As such, it does more than > talk; it can run many > programs > developed for off-the-shelf Pocket PCs - including > medical software. The > PAC > Mate also incorporates > JAWS for Windows > �, leading screen reading software that can easily > be adapted with scripts > to make those programs accessible for blind users. > > Cooke, who at 40 is completing her last months' > studies at the National > College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, > chose naturopathy as her > specialty > because, "Naturopathy combines the prescription of > (standard manufactured) > drugs with natural remedies and emphasizes general > diagnosis, the use of > natural > therapeutics and traditional medicine, and we work > with diet, nutrition, > life style, and botanical medicine," she said. > "Ultimately, naturopathy is > about > treating the whole body and finding the cause of > disease and not just > symptoms." > > Naturopathic specialists are licensed in 15 states > and all Canadian > provinces. "We study the first two years the same > as any MD studies - > pharmacology and > all the basic sciences," she said. "In the last > two years, we do thousands > of hours of clinical work, and study nutrition, > natural therapeutics, > homeopathy, > and botanical medicine. That's where it is > important to have (portable) > access to medical research and current > information. Medical knowledge > changes weekly. > It wouldn't be practical to scan all this > information and print it. It > would > be too unwieldy to have to look through all those > printed resources and > keep > them updated, even with sighted assistance." > > "In my third year of medical studies last year, I > realized that all the > comprehensive medical reference software out there > was moving toward PDAs > (Personal > Digital Assistants, also called Pocket PCs) or the > Internet," she said. > "You > don't always have an Internet connection, so I > decided a PDA would be best > for me." > > Cooke was interested in > Epocrates Essentials > T, an all-in-one mobile guide to drugs, diseases, > and diagnostics. "I > looked > into what could possibly run this kind of program > for me (and be > accessible). > Only the PAC Mate could, so I contacted the Oregon > Commission for the > Blind > and requested the purchase of a PAC Mate." > > She chose the BX 440 model which comes with a > braille display and > Perkins-style keyboard, often used by the blind in > place of the > traditional > QWERTY typewriter > layout keyboard. The PAC Mate, as with any > mainstream Pocket PC or PDA, > allows her to take notes, write and receive > e-mail, surf the Web with an > Internet > connection, use a calendar, calculator, and other > standard PDA functions - > all made accessible for the blind. > > "I really enjoy my PAC Mate," said Cooke. "I take > all my chart notes on it > and print them out on a portable printer that > works with it. I like the > flexibility > of having the traditional PDA applications running > on my PAC Mate." > > She still had one more obstacle in her way. The > professional medical > software written for PDAs was not accessible to > the blind. > > "I knew the PAC Mate would run the (Epocrates) > software, but it would need > to be scripted to be accessible to me."' That's > where Michael Hooks, a > legally > blind former assistive technology specialist at > the Washington State > School > for the Blind, stepped in. Along with his > associate, Chris Meredith who is > totally blind, Hooks owns and operates > Next Level Assistive Technology, > a Vancouver, Washington-based business that serves > the greater Northwest. > The company consults with universities, government > agencies, and others on > assistive > technology and also sells accessible technology > products. > > Scripting is the process of writing a series of > statements that tells JAWS > how to navigate or what to read under different > conditions. With the > blessing > of Epocrates, Inc., Hooks and Meredith began > writing a script for the PAC > Mate that would make the software accessible. > > "I've been writing scripts for JAWS since 1996, > basically since its > inception," Hooks said. "I have a lot of > experience, but this was the > first > time I had > written a script for the PAC Mate. A week or so > later, Chris (Meredith) > and > I had it scripted, ready to go, and functional. > The PAC Mate is truly the > most > powerful PDA for the blind on the market today. > Most (Pocket PC software) > can be installed and will work right out of the > box. Because The PAC Mate > uses > JAWS, we can easily script programs to be fully > functional. Competing > products don't have that kind of flexibility." > > "I was amazed at how quickly they had Epocrates > scripted for my PAC Mate," > Cooke said. "I also enjoyed being part of the > process, where (Hooks and > Meredith) > were not familiar with something medical, I could > give them suggestions > about how it worked best with us. It worked out > really well." > > Cooke practices 12 hours a week in her school's > teaching clinics and a > community clinic. With Epocrates made accessible, > "Now I have access at my > fingertips > to diagnosis tools, signs and symptoms of > diseases, and causes and > treatments. I also have a lab tool. If I want to > order a lab, I know how > much it's going > to cost. I can interpret the lab work. Within one > tool, I also have an > infectious disease component, so, let's say, if > someone comes in with > Strep > throat, > I can look it up and see what drugs are usually > used to treat it." She > also > is using Pocket Excel on the PAC Mate to set up a > 450-item spreadsheet of > medicinal > product ingredients, prices, and pertinent > information she needs when > seeing > patients. > > Hooks and Meredith have gone on to write scripts > that make two additional > medical reference guides for Pocket PCs accessible > on the PAC Mate. One > program > is a reference manual for the chart codes for > diseases. The other is a > series of internal medicine manuals. > > "I definitely get great benefit from my PAC Mate > with all of these > programs," Cooke said. "I can look up things > during my clinic shifts, > things that all > doctors are expected to look up like drugs and the > interactions they might > have and what herbs interact with prescription > drugs. I can also look up > side > effects of drugs patients are on now. If I'm > diagnosing a potential > disease, > I have the explanations there of differential > diagnoses, and I can present > them for a case. Mostly, it's just a great tool to > have for all of these > things." > > With her accessible tools, Cooke said, she can > practice medicine on a > level > playing field with her sighted colleagues. "The > only thing I need help > with > is a student or doctor to assist me with things, > like if a person needs me > to look at a rash or needs me to look into an > ear." In fact, other doctors > have > asked Chris to use her PAC Mate to help them > rapidly develop treatment > plans. > > As for her patients' reaction to her blindness and > her unique accessible > medical tools, Cooke says, "Occasionally, a > patient is taken aback for a > few > minutes, > but because I talk and really listen to them, they > really enjoy working > with > me. They are always fascinated by the PAC Mate and > what it is. They are > fascinated > by the braille display particularly." > > Chris expects to set up her practice in Portland, > with a second office in > nearby Newberg. > > > > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.1.375 / Virus Database: 268.2.1/279 - > Release Date: 3/10/2006 > > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com To unsubscribe from this list send a blank Email to bksvol-discuss-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx put the word 'unsubscribe' by itself in the subject line. To get a list of available commands, put the word 'help' by itself in the subject line.