I-pad use for ALS patient

[dncngber]

My wife is in advanced stages of ALS and has limited arm use, but still can type on her mac book, the next stage will be limited use of hands and voice. my Q is will the I-pad (with apps) be able to take the place of her cell-phone and will the keyboard be more user-friendly (larger keyboard)

 

[IpadOne]

Ipad can't call

My wife is in advanced stages of ALS and has limited arm use, but still can type on her mac book, the next stage will be limited use of hands and voice. my Q is will the I-pad (with apps) be able to take the place of her cell-phone and will the keyboard be more user-friendly (larger keyboard)

Hi DCN , it's really sad to know the condition of you're wife, i am sorry but yet Ipad doesn't have the call function, only the Skype or MSN can be used for made phone call .... maybe if you jailbreak it you can find in Cydia this function but i am not sure how it will work

 

[JohnnyApple]

Sorry to hear about your wife's condition. I don't think the iPad will take the place of the cell phone as it will not have cellular (voice) capabilities, only data.

Your only option will be to use other programs as IpadOne pointed out, but they are not true "cell" type programs.

 

[EARL97850]

Welcome to the forum.

I'm sorry to hear about your wife's condition. I wouldn't know if the iPad would be able to help your wife or not.

I'm sorry I couldn't help.

Best of luck.

Cya

 

[jwookie]

Welcome from Southern California!


3 days till Pre-Order!

 

[Miriam Davidson]

ALS and iPads

Hi, I am a writer for the Muscular Dystrophy Association's ALS Newsmagazine. I'm writing a story about whether the iPad is useful for people with ALS or not. I would appreciate receiving e-mail addresses and/or other contact info from anyone who has ALS or is caring for a person with ALS who is interested in the subject of using the iPad as a communication device. Thanks, Miriam Davidson

 

[iPadCharlie]

I am sorry to hear about your wife's condition.

Here is a free app that you might want to look at called Phrase Board. There are two big YES and NO buttons plus several other useful phrases that people with limited speaking or dexterity issues can use to communicate.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/phrase-board/id380424676?mt=8

 

[iPadFly]

Hi there,

It's great that you are looking at the iPad to help your wife communicate. I don't know much about ALS but I know the iPad is working for autistic children who have limited communication. Here is good article I found on the subject. Since I'm a newbie I can't post the link. you'll have to go to google and search for "ipad apps for autism"

 

[Marabou Muddler]

I'm very sorry about your wife having ALS. I cannot imagine anything worse (either having it or having a loved one suffer from it). I worked w/ ALS pts at a hospital years ago and more recently, my business partner's (BP) husband passed away from ALS (and the husband of a contractor we hired passed away from ALS).

My BP's husband used a computer system that used eye gaze - an eye tracking device - to spell words. The computer system helped him quickly identify the words he wanted and then would convert the words to speech. I believe a speech therapist could help you find such a system as there are at least several available for ALS and others who cannot talk.

 

[Mbrio]

Hi, I am a writer for the Muscular Dystrophy Association's ALS Newsmagazine. I'm writing a story about whether the iPad is useful for people with ALS or not. I would appreciate receiving e-mail addresses and/or other contact info from anyone who has ALS or is caring for a person with ALS who is interested in the subject of using the iPad as a communication device. Thanks, Miriam Davidson

Hello Miriam I am interested in knowing more about iPad use for ALS patients. How can I co tact you?