Danny wants to drive

Danny's life was profoundly altered over two decades ago by an acquired brain injury, which was the result of a tragic accident. Despite this significant challenge, Danny has maintained his independence, living in his own home. However, he is unable to read or write, a barrier that creates a significant dependency on others. For years, he relied entirely on family and friends to read his mail, even sensitive and confidential documents that most individuals would prefer to keep private. This reliance, while born of necessity, often left Danny feeling exposed and lacking true autonomy in managing his personal affairs.

Beyond the daily struggles with literacy, Danny harboured a deeply personal and long-cherished aspiration: to drive. He is the proud owner of a static caravan, a sanctuary where he finds joy in relaxing and unwinding. Yet, the inability to drive meant that his cherished escape was always out of reach without the assistance of others. The caravan's considerable distance from his home meant a constant reliance on friends or family for transportation, both to and from his retreat. 

Now, you may well be wondering what wanting to drive has to do with assistive technology. Well, it turns out it has quite a lot to do with it. When I originally met Danny, he explained that he would be having online theory lessons and admitted that he is a complete technophobe. His actual words were ‘back in the day, if you wanted to learn theory you had to get a bus and meet in person’. We talked about what online meant and what a lesson might look like. Danny said, ‘I didn’t know lessons could be done from the comfort of my own armchair and at the tap of a screen I could be chatting to a teacher in London or somewhere’.

This realisation was a pivotal moment. It demonstrated not only a newfound understanding of technology but also the immediate benefit it offered: convenience and accessibility. For someone who had always associated learning with physical presence and travel, the idea of engaging with an instructor from anywhere was truly transformative. This initial conversation set the stage for how assistive technology could bridge the gap between his apprehension and his ambition to drive.

We explored different ways that Danny might be able to access his theory and concluded that the easiest solution for Danny was an iPad combined with an OrCam (a camera that will convert text to speech) to access any written text. Identifying the platforms was the easy bit, convincing Danny that he could learn how to use it and that it would be easy for him was the hard part!

Danny has a love for music, in particular Ozzy Osbourne, so I initially suggested that we set Spotify up on his iPad and we create an ‘Ozzy’ playlist for his caravan. Danny embraced this and on my next visit showed me all the other songs he had downloaded and how he could connect his iPad to his Bluetooth speaker, which he said was perfect for when he is sitting having a few cold beverages in the garden.

Danny had fully embraced the iPad, even discovering new functionalities. "You can't just play music on it, you know," he informed me, "you can play films and series too." He then proudly showed me the Netflix app I'd set up, already deep into a series.

Our next step was introducing the OrCam. I demonstrated how it could read song titles aloud, which he eagerly explored. I then explained he could use it to independently access his mail, something he previously relied on others for. "I don't need anyone to read anything for me ever again," he declared, "I can do it myself just by tapping the button."

Having grown accustomed to his tech, I decided to introduce Danny to his online theory lessons. The tutor uses Microsoft Teams for video calls and WhatsApp for the mock theory test links, sending them to Danny's phone. We explored Microsoft Teams together, and I created shortcuts to simplify access. Danny quickly mastered the Teams calls and completed his first lesson.

However, his old Android phone struggled with the images and links sent via WhatsApp. Danny called me, expressing his need for a new phone. I suggested an iPhone, and he readily agreed. Danny had truly transformed, moving from tech unfamiliarity to embracing and even requesting it.

I took Danny an iPhone, complete with his favourite Ozzy song as a ringtone. He was delighted with it. We transferred all his theory across from his old phone and had a test run with me pretending to be his tutor on a teams call in another room.

Danny quickly mastered the OrCam, using it to read text-only sections of the theory he couldn't read himself. Screen sharing, typically straightforward on Windows, proved more complex on an iPad. We simplified the iPad process by reducing the number of taps, leading Danny to exclaim, "I never knew I'd be able to just tap the red button, then the green button and then I can share my screen with somebody sat in London, it's great."

Danny says he, absolutely 100% loves his tech and wouldn’t have dreamt he could have achieved all this without it. He is hoping to complete his theory test in a couple of weeks time.

Good luck Danny!