The overarching aim of The Professional Association of Assistive Technologists (PAAT) is to improve Assistive Technology (AT) as a discipline. This will result in improved quality, standards, opportunities and impact for AT users, AT practitioners and leaders in the field.
The specific aims of PAAT are:
- Improved quality of provision for AT users and their advocates
- Improved professional status
- Independence and integrity of the Assistive Technologist role
- Improved professional training routes
- Standardisation of employment terms and conditions
- Maintained standards through adherence to a professional code of conduct and CPD
- Opportunities for peer support as part of a professional community
- Enhanced confidence about the quality of AT services provided
- Acceptance by commissioners and regulators for the inclusion of AT services as core to service delivery.
PAAT does not look to replace any existing Professional Bodies in the education, health or social care field. PAAT is a place for AT professionals who don't already have a professional 'home'. We will work with and alongside other professional membership bodies. Assistive Technologists frequently work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and PAAT intends to do the same.
Our core principles
Being an effective Assistive Technologist is as much about ‘mind-set’ as it is skills. PAAT recognises practitioners who are committed to a user-centred and evidence-based approach, and who value developing their own practice as well as supporting the practice of others. Members of PAAT demonstrate a commitment to:
User-centred practice
That respects the rights of AT users (and/or where appropriate their advocates) to access and use AT, supports them to make informed decisions about their AT use, and adapts AT and AT support to ensure all of their AT related needs are met. Key components of user-centred practice include advocacy, presumption of capacity, and supported decision-making in relation to managing any potential risks of AT use.
Evidence-based practice
That actively seeks and evaluates evidence in order to identify and implement the best possible AT solutions. This evidence may be derived from a range of sources, including feedback from the AT user when reviewing personal goals and progress, personal and AT user reflections on the effectiveness of previous AT solutions, publicly disseminated AT research, and AT policy documents and debates.
Continual development of own professional practice
That regularly reflects on successes and failures of own practice, regularly plans and appraises current and future goals, and regularly attends externally run professional development initiatives such as university or college courses, supplier courses, webinars from recognised organisations, and conferences, whether research or practitioner focused.
Community-focused practice
That actively seeks to work with other professionals who are supporting the AT user, for example through multi-disciplinary, interdisciplinary, or transdisciplinary teamwork, as well as supporting the developing practice of other AT practitioners through sharing and disseminating their own and others’ best practice.
Our core competencies
Technical knowledge of AT on its own is not sufficient to demonstrate competence as an Assistive Technologist. PAAT recognises ‘well-rounded’ practitioners who have a good understanding of the AT user, AT, the AT eco-system, and the wider AT context. Members demonstrate competency in the following areas:
AT users
A knowledge of the strengths, needs, preferences, and aspirations of AT users, and how these might inform the decisions they make about the role and value of AT in their lives.
AT
An understanding of the constraints and benefits of different AT for AT users, together with the technical knowledge and ability to use AT relevant to their workplace, including accessibility settings that meet the needs of the people they are supporting.
The AT eco-system
An understanding of the processes by which access to AT is funded, assessed, delivered, and evaluated within the contexts in which AT professionals are working.
The wider AT context
An understanding of relevant national and international legislation and how it applies in context, for example how equalities, inclusion, accessibility, and rights are affected by access, or lack of access, to suitable AT.