Man with Autism Creates App for Emergency Communication
Named to the HuffPost What's Working Honor Roll
A Belgian man with autism has created an "Emergency Chat" app for communicating in situations where speech is not an option. Jeroen De Busser, a student in computer science at the University of Antwerp, came up with the idea after experiencing an anxiety attack during which he found himself unable to communicate verbally with friends.
The app allows users who are unable to speak because of a medical or psychiatric condition to select among a number of pre-programmed messages depending on the nature of the emergency -- "Aspie attack," "asthma attack," "trach meltdown" -- then displays the message on a splash screen that others can read and respond to. Users can also enter their own messages.
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As journalists, we dutifully report on what's going wrong, from scandals and corruption to natural disasters and social problems. But far too often the media fails to show the whole picture, neglecting to tell stories of what is working. From scientific breakthroughs to successful crime-reduction initiatives, the What's Working Honor Roll highlights some of the best reporting and analysis, from a range of media outlets, on all the ways people are working toward solutions to some of our greatest challenges.
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To view a sample of the app's display, visit The Huffington Post: Media website: http://huff.to/1HW7WIa.
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