Back from vacation and I'm on-call in the hospital again. It's still kinda strange. I leave for the week and some of the kids in the hospital are the same but many are new, having arrived while I was gone. The names change but the stories are similar...unfortunately.
I was walking around in the therapy room tonight and I came across this power wheelchair. I noticed the controller and it reminded me of a joystick controller of a video game. Of course, this one initially reminded me of the simple ATARI joystick from my youth but after noticing the multiple buttons, I realized that this one resembles the advanced controllers of modern day Playstations and X-Boxes!
I've noticed that the kids these days can manage to keep track of dozens of button combinations and joystick movements to navigate the fantasy-worlds of video games. In a similar way, it amazes me how well a child with disabilities can use a similar device to navigate the real world around her. So, by providing these children with the means, they continue to surprise me in many ways...very good ways.