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Delaware Assistive Technology Initiative

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Vol. 3, No. 4, July/August 1995

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HomeGrown in Delaware:
The Bradley Board

Bradley Enterprises Wilmington, DE

Question: What is lightweight, low-cost, disposable, and capable of communicating several words a minute?

Answer: The Bradley Board, developed and marketed by Bradley Enterprises in Wilmington.

The Bradley Board is the creation of Irene Bradley-Sacher. While working as a ward clerk at St. Francis Hospital in the late 70's, Bradley-Sacher observed the frustration of many patients who were unable to communicate with family members and medical personnel because of tracheotomies and other medical procedures or conditions. While she concluded that it was "human nature not to talk to people who wouldn't talk to you," she also theorized that people got better more quickly when they took a more active role in their recuperation, and that included being able to communicate fully and effectively with the medical staff.

So she set about developing a device that would allow people to communicate via written words rather than spoken words. The device existed in several formats before its current "wipe board" configuration. It includes space for the patient to write messages as well as pictures and lists of frequently-used words that the user can point to with the hand or with eyegaze. Bradley-Sacher consulted an optometrist to make sure that the size of the words and the background color were appropriate for patients with visual limitations.

The two-sided Bradley Board (pictured left) has an actual size of 10-3/4" x 13-3/4". It is available for $12 from Bradley Enterprises, 1204 Beech Street, Wilmington, DE 19805-4325. Phone orders may be placed by calling (302) 658-0203. Bradley-Sacher emphasizes that the company prides itself on a 24-hour turnaround from receipt of an order to shipping of the product, and all shipments are sent via priority mail.

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