Just as an author does not typically spend years writing a book, to then make it available to the public for free, most App developers are not able to provide their material for free either. The amount charged for the App is often commensurate with the initial investment. As a clinician of 20 years I could never justify painting the technology portrait as being all sunshine and rainbows. The truth is sometimes the rapid pace of technological develop- ment gets away from us. Sometimes I feel as though I could take a two-week vacation only to come back to work feeling as though what I used to know is obsolete! It can feel over- whelming when coworkers and families bring new programs to our attention that we’ve never heard of before. We must always adhere to the highest possible standards for evidence-based practice, for all of the children and adults that we serve, yet sometimes we feel it is impossible to keep up on the research behind this ever-changing technology. Further complicating our decision making, there are times that it seems the advancement of the technology is faster than the research needed to support whether or not it is evidence based! Well- intentioned people may request that we use various forms of technology in diagnosis or treatment, when we feel either poorly equipped to do so, or even question the treatment effi- cacy of doing so.
We are also tasked as providers to give culturally and linguis- tically appropriate service to a broad population of people. We must remain ever-sensitive to the needs of individuals, which can be quite diverse! Being prepared to meet such broad needs often hinges on having an awareness of cultural heterogeneity as well as a high level of emotional intelligence. There may be times in our professions when the technology available to us in diagnosis and treatment does not seem to meet our critical criteria for cultural sensitivity. As we progress deeper into the 21st century, we will continue to face new challenges as well as opportunities associated with rapidly evolving technology. I am proud to have made my own contribution to the technology that abounds, in the form of creating Speech Sounds Visualized. I admire the many entrepreneurs within our professions who have helped create the vast array of products that positively impact our field. I feel honored to have been witness to such spectacular technolog- ical advancement over the past 20 years. One can only imagine what will occur in the next 20 years! May we enjoy the ride, and choose to embrace the transformation.
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator