Subject: [Skylite] [Jobs] Blind Doctor In Portland Oregon
>
>>>>> > 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 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 (r), 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 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.


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