What is it about?
This article is about 3D-printing assistive devices. It discusses three workflows that were developed in different European research projects. These workflows allow occupational therapists to follow a set of straightforward steps with their clients (potentially collaborating with technicians) to design and produce custom-made assistive devices.
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Photo by Tom Claes on Unsplash
Why is it important?
3D printing is a technique that offers tremendous opportunities for creating custom-made assistive devices for individuals with disabilities. This paper offers guidance to occupational therapists (and other healthcare professionals) to design and produce 3D-printed assistive devices, which is not yet a common skill taught in healthcare education.
Perspectives
We wrote this article with a group of researchers who had all been involved in developing a workflow offering healthcare professionals a step-by-step approach to designing and producing custom-made assistive devices with their clients. Although we were involved in three different projects in three different countries, it has amazed me how similar the workflows we developed were. This strengthens me in believing that these workflows really offer a solid way of working for healthcare professionals.
Karin Slegers
Zuyd Hogeschool
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Designing and manufacturing custom-made 3D printed assistive devices: A comparison of three workflows, Technology and Disability, September 2023, IOS Press,
DOI: 10.3233/tad-221511.
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