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From
The Toronto Star:
Sometimes the littlest thing can bring the most joy.
When 32-year-old Eric Wan (pictured) gently nudges his head to direct movement on a computer screen, the sound of a single note rings out. His beaming smile seems even broader.
While it may not seem like a huge achievement, it is — bringing together technology and the love of music.
The feat is all the more powerful, given the long, tough road Wan has faced since he was 18 and suffered a serious reaction to a routine measles vaccination that left him paralyzed below the shoulders and unable to breathe.
After four months in the intensive care unit, he eventually spent two years in West Park, a long-term rehabilitation hospital, learning how to live with his disability, which requires him to breathe consciously during the day and use a ventilator at night.
In June, he graduated from the University of Toronto with an engineering degree that took him 10 years to complete on a part-time basis. In September, he started a master’s degree in biomedical engineering, with a focus on how to use technology to make life better for children with disabilities.
“I was depressed for some time, but school really helped. It kept me busy,” said Wan, who is amazingly positive despite the daily challenges he faces.
He finds both solace and purpose in his work at the Pediatric Rehabilitation Intelligent Systems Multidisciplinary (PRISM) lab at Holland Bloorview hospital.
The self-described computer geek, who started computer programming at 8, has found a way to meld his fascination with computers to help children with disabilities.
One project he is especially proud of is the virtual musical instrument, which has been commercialized and the software sold in Australia and New Zealand.
“In a way, it’s a first step for me to play a musical instrument again,” said Wan, who played the violin before his paralysis.
“Many children are not able to grow up, physically able to hold a musical instrument,” he said. “We have designed a system that translates movement into music.”
The system, which operates like a Wii console but without the wand, plays a different note with the touch of every object. As he moves his head, that movement triggers an object on the screen, leading to a note.
Users can set the program to play various notes and chords. The sounds range from piano to tuba and even a church bell and a helicopter.
For Wan, his love of technology has turned out to be a natural fit because he knows first-hand how advances can make his own life easier.
When he started his undergraduate degree a decade ago, scanners were not widely available, making it difficult to read textbooks.
“I had a bookstand and a mouth stick,” he said, describing the painfully slow way he would study.
Improvements in software especially have made it easier for him to learn and communicate. He has a sticker attached to the centre of his glasses that can control the mouse and cursor on his computer. And with a textbook scanned in, he can jump from page to page.
Tom Chau, Canada Research chair in pediatric rehabilitiaton engineering, said Wan quickly impressed everyone in his lab when he arrived in 2006, especially with his amazing memory, given that he cannot take notes during a meeting.
“We were blown away,” Chau said. “He’s always been a bright light. And he’s also been very positive. He’s not one who pities himself.”
But Chau added that until Wan joined his team, they didn’t fully understand the daily challenges he faces as a quadriplegic, from housing to transportation to overall health. Or even the fact that he can’t push the button for the elevator.
On one occasion, the air conditioning was on the fritz in the lab, and the warm air was causing Wan to doze off — which is extremely dangerous because if Wan falls asleep without his respirator, he stops breathing.
“There are all these little things that you or I wouldn’t have to think twice about. The system is not set up for people like Eric to succeed,” said Chau. “It’s phenomenal what he’s gone through and to be so positive.”
