Abstract: BACKGROUND: Recently in Brazil, there has been investment
and improvements in the service delivery system for assistive technology
provision. However, there is little documentation of this process, or
evidence that users are being involved appropriately. OBJECTIVE: To
understand how assistive technology service provision currently functions in
Belo Horizonte city, Brazil, in order to provide context-specific
interventions and recommendations to improve services. METHOD: Qualitative
research design, including visits to key institutions and semi-structured
interviews with key stakeholders. Interview questions were divided with two
purposes: 1) Exploratory, aiming to understand present service functioning;
2) Evaluative, aiming to assess staff difficulties in applying existing best
practice. RESULTS: Assistive Technology services in Belo Horizonte fall
under the `medical model' definition of the service delivery system
developed by AAATE. It was also found that staff lack training and knowledge
support to assess user requirements and to involve them during the decision-making process. Additionally, there is no follow-up stage after the device
is delivered. CONCLUSIONS: The study clearly defines the service provision
function and the staff difficulties at Belo Horizonte city, providing
information for further studies.
Keywords: Service delivery system, assistive technology, user influence
