Dragon For Dane

Dane is a young man with a motor neurone disease that has affected his wrist and finger strength, making it difficult to type for a period of time.

Being employed at Brisbane Council, Dane was able to apply through a scheme called JobAccess to obtain the necessary solutions for him to remain effective in his position and be employed.

To overcome the discomfort and inability to type for a prolonged period, Peter Cracknell, Quantum’s Queensland Vision Technology Specialist, suggested a computer program called Dragon Naturally Speaking. Through JobAccess, Dane obtained Dragon Naturally Speaking, which enables him to input information to his computer using his voice to dictate the information, rather than type.

Unfortunately, the disease has also affected Dane’s speech, meaning that the computer would not accurately record the information Dane was dictating, which prompted another visit by Peter Cracknell. Peter went beyond the normal range of products available through Quantum, and determined that a special, high quality mircophone with noise-cancelling called PowerMic III be deployed.

Once installed, Dane was able to attain excellent results and now uses this for all computer applications including Zoom. The PowerMic III might look intimidating with numerous buttons and joystick but, like so many devices, can be used effectively with the use of only those needed to perform the function required.

This is a great outcome for Dane, as his employment has been secured, and highlights the ethos within Quantum to go beyond to get the best outcome for its customers.