Welcome to the web pages for the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Accessible Medical Instrumentation (RERC-AMI)
Our aim is to address the critical need for new medical instrumentation technologies that are universally accessible to all people
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Federal funding for this Center, from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department of Education, ended in July 2008. Most of the content on the above web pages has not been updated since 2007 or 2008, but will continue to be available through at least 2011.
Direct link to some key pages (added 2010):
- Proposed Guidelines for Designing and Purchasing Accessible Medical Equipment (part of R&D project D4) - includes sections on both general guidance and specific guidance (e.g., medical tables, medical chairs, weight scales, diagnostic imaging platforms):
- see below, and also the U.S. Access Board statement on plans to set Standards for Medical Equipment under the Health Care Reform Law of 2010, and their page on medical equipment resources
- see also Section 16 (Accessibility Considerations) of the ANSI/AAMI HE 75 National Standard (Human Factors Engineering: Design of Medical Devices), which the AAMI has generously has made available, in consultation with the US Access Board, as a resource [members of our team (Winters, Story, Lemke) were on the AAMI Human factors Committee, and were the authors of Section 16]
- MUA-Lab (Mobile Usability and Accessibility Lab) Technology (part of R&D Project D1) - includes detailed information for replicating this system, which has been used for over 10 IRB-approved human subjects research studies in Wisconsin and California
- Book and Workshop Report that were among the deliverables for this grant
Extracted from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (with some text bolded for effect):
"... SEC. 4203. REMOVING BARRIERS AND IMPROVING ACCESS TO WELLNESS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. Title V of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 791 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end of the following:
SEC. 510. ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS FOR ACCESSIBLE MEDICAL DIAGNOSTIC EQUIPMENT.
(a) Standards - Not later than 24 months after the date of enactment of the Affordable Health Choices Act, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board shall, in consultation with the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, promulgate regulatory standards in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act setting forth the minimum technical criteria for medical diagnostic equipment used in (or in conjunction with) physician's offices, clinics, emergency rooms, hospitals, and other medical settings. The standards shall ensure that such equipment is accessible to, and usable by, individuals with accessibility needs, and shall allow independent entry to, use of, and exit from the equipment by such individuals to the maximum extent possible.
(b) Medical Diagnostic Equipment Covered - The standards issued under subsection (a) for medical diagnostic equipment shall apply to equipment that includes examination tables, examination chairs (including chairs used for eye examinations or procedures, and dental examinations or procedures), weight scales, mammography equipment, x-ray machines, and other radiological equipment commonly used for diagnostic purposes by health professionals.
(c) Review and Amendment - The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, in consultation with the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, shall periodically review and, as appropriate, amend the standards in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. ..."