1. Helping to improve productivity, autonomy and social integration

2. Work = Personal autonomy and independence + Social integration
The challenge…
Work = Personal autonomy and independence + Social integration
They want to work
(Most) want to hire
The autonomy of people with disabilities is a key factor to assure their integration into society. This autonomy implies the capacity of performing activities of daily living independently or with minimum assistance of their relatives or caregivers.
One way to maximize autonomy is work.
There is not a complete social inclusion if people cannot access to an employment. Work integration not only provides people with disabilities with a meaningful activity and an economic benefit, but also has the potential to improve their skills, self esteem, social competences and provide the individual with a sense of independence and autonomy that facilitates social interaction and enhances their value in the society.
Considering that, the initial situation is that we have, at one side, people with mild or moderate intellectual disabilities that want to work, and, at the other side, companies that (most of them?) want to hire people with disabilities into their staff.
But… Which is the real situation?
But…

3. The challenge… So… …very few work and very few hire…
Problems with: learning, time management, risk perception, autonomy,…
Stereotypes, myths, lack of resources and information
The reality is that less than 20% of individuals with intellectual disabilities are employed, although many more want to work.
Although people with disabilities have the competence, in most cases, to lead independent and active lives and successfully perform a wide range of jobs, statistics shows that these people are employed at much lower rates and are much less likely to be in the labour force than people without disabilities.
Some of these difficulties are related to issues such as difficulty in controlling time, lack of independence in performing tasks, incorrect work habits or poor interpersonal communication (*).
On the other hand, companies and sheltered employment centres that hire or want to hire people with intellectual disabilities sometimes, have to face an additional cost and a loss of productivity that is associated with the mentioned problems.
So, which is our proposal to improve this situation?
(*)
Slowness on learning and performing tasks.
Need for frequent queries to the responsible to do the job.
Lack of clear criteria for assessing the quality of their work, which results in constant supervision.
Inadequate perception of time, devoting much time to a task and too little to others, with consequent difficulty in adjusting to schedules and work programs.
Difficulties in the displacement and orientation, both in access to the company and in the tasks with different locations.
Inadequate awareness of occupational hazards and how to protect against them.
Difficulty learning to use tools, machines and equipment.
So…

4. Our proposal: TUTOR-DIS
A system/service that helps…
...to improve the autonomy, social integration and workplace adaptation for people with cognitive disabilities
…to make the companies that employ them more competitive and productive
To help both the labour integration and the productivity, it is important to develop tools that make easier the adaptation to the workplace of people with intellectual disabilities.
To do this, the IBV and the Asociación FEAPS, have developed TUTOR-DIS.
TUTOR-DIS is a software application which aims…
...to improve the autonomy, social integration and workplace adaptation for people with cognitive disabilities
…to make the companies that employ them more competitive and productive

5. What is? TUTOR-DIS is a software tool for mobile devices.
Permits the creation of activities for improving autonomy
It is useful in several environments
What is TUTOR-DIS?
TUTOR-DIS, a software tool for mobile devices that helps to support learning, time management, communication, and at last, the autonomy of people with intellectual disabilities, mainly in the workplace but also in other environments (home, social, etc.). This software can be also very useful to make the companies that employ people with disabilities more competitive and productive.

6. How it works 1. Needs detection
2. Planning the adaptation (create activities)
3. Send the activities to the phone
4. User consults the phone when needed
How it works TUTOR-DIS?
The system is based on an administrator that creates and manages the contents, and a person with disability that uses the system.
The first step is to identify the problems and needs of the disabled user, assess where he needs support and how the program could help him to solve these difficulties.
The second step is to create the different support activities through the administration program. There are many different activities that can be created:
Work instructions or tutorials "step by step”.
Questionnaires
Checklists
Alarms and appointments
Adapted communication system (spatial location, calls and messages).
Etc.
Once activities have been created, the administrator can send them directly to the phone or mobile device of the user.
Finally, the user can consult the program when he needs it (for example if has forgotten a step of a task). The software can also notify the user when there is a important activity or event.

7. Suited and adapted to the users’ needs
Besides the features already mentioned, one of the most important aspects is that the application is adapted to the needs and characteristics of users with intellectual disabilities.
By on side, the software has an adapted structure and design:
Interface with very simple structure and easy navigation.
Big buttons that make it possible to handle both the finger as the pointer.
Feasibility to combine text, images and audio according to user requirements.
By the other side, the administrator can configure the system differently for each person, adding or removing features depending on the needs of the user.

8. Next, I would show you a very short video illustrating the experience of using tutor-dis in a cleaning company.

9. Pilot with 30 workers / 5 companies
Impact of the results
Pilot with 30 workers / 5 companies
Great interest from companies, sheltered employment centres and associations (>100 users)
Other associations and institutions (not initial target) are interested
The development of the application has benefited from the involvement of potential users from the design phase to prototype evaluation. These experiences have been very satisfactory, both for workers and employers. After 6 months of use, almost all workers were able to accomplish their tasks better and faster and with lower need of assistance. Employers also detected better productivity and efficiency. The initial investment (mobile phones and training of users and supervisors) was quickly recovered after less than 2 months of use.
The launching of tutor-dis has generated great excitement among companies, Sheltered Employment Centres and Associations of people with intellectual disabilities. To date, more than 100 members from different organizations and professionals have enrolled in the tutor-dis platform and are using the application. These clients are also demanding training resources, examples and counselling in the creation of activities.

10. Future actions / funding needs
Dissemination activities
Tutor-dis international
Service: Support and counselling
To keep the project and the product alive, we are looking for funding, that will help the team members to create additional activities, give technical support to the users, implement the system in companies and associations and, at last, spread the product in order that this idea can reach all the potential beneficiaries.
Tutor-dis has also applied for a Leonardo da Vinci project to spread the TUTOR-DIS system in different European countries, by developing and disseminating national versions of TUTOR-DIS (including an English version).

11. Don’t solve my problems: give me the tools in order that I can solve them by myself
To finish, I would like to conclude with a sentence that, in my opinion, clearly summarizes the ultimate goal of this project:
“Don’t solve my problems: give me the tools in order that I can solve them by myself”

12. Thanks for your attention