Measuring assistive technology supply and demand: A scoping review

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology
• Health Services Research
• Global Health

Background:

• Assistive products (APs) are crucial for daily living, yet their supply and demand dynamics are complex.
• Diverse stakeholders influence the market for APs, necessitating robust data collection methods.
• Current methods for evaluating AP population-level market data vary significantly.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review current population-level assistive product supply and demand estimation methods for five priority APs.
• To provide recommendations for enhancing national and global AP market evaluations.
• To identify gaps and propose improvements in research methodologies for APs.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search and double-screening of abstracts.
• Extraction of data on WHO world region, publication year, age-groups, AP domain, study method, and individual assessment approach.
• Categorization of study methods (e.g., cross-sectional, secondary analyses) and individual assessment approaches (e.g., self-report, clinical evaluation).

Main Results:

• 497 records were identified, with vision-related APs dominating the literature (65%).
• Hearing, mobility, and cognitive APs were underrepresented in the reviewed studies.
• Cross-sectional studies (72%) and secondary analyses of cross-sectional data (14%) were the most common study methods.

Conclusions:

• Standardized AP indicators are critical for comparable population-level research.
• Appropriate application of methods in specific contexts will improve supply and demand estimations.
• Enhanced evaluation methods are essential for expanding sustainable access to assistive products globally.