Life Without Barriers joins Know Me, Support Me, a national research initiative harnessing AI innovation to support better health for people with intellectual disability.
Image: A man sits in front of a desktop computer with a woman standing next to him. Both are looking at the screen.
People with disability will have more support mobilised by technology, under an exciting new national research initiative, Know Me, Support Me. This incredible new project will transform how people with disability, providers and health agencies use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help create improved engagement and communication with people with intellectual disability.
Led by the University of New South Wales and funded through the Medical Research Future Fund, this consortium partnership over five years brings together people with lived experience, disability organisations, universities, health professionals, and technology innovators. At its heart, the project is about leveraging the best of technology so people with disability can make more choices about the services and support they receive.
In Australia, more than 600,000 people live with intellectual disability. Research shows that they often experience preventable health issues because changes in physical or mental health can be subtle and sometimes missed. Barriers such as communication challenges, limited health literacy, or misattributing symptoms to disability itself can delay treatment.
These delays can have a significant impact on quality of life.
Know Me, Support Me is designed to change this by creating an accessible, evidence-based AI reasoning tool. The tool will help people with intellectual disability and their supporters to recognise early signs of change, communicate them clearly with health professionals, and create personalised support plans.
Central to this project is co-design. People with intellectual disability, their families, carers, and support workers will work alongside researchers and service providers to design, test, and refine the AI tool. This ensures it is practical, inclusive, and shaped by the people who will use it.
Inclusive research practices are embedded from the beginning, with lived experience researchers as part of the team. This commitment reflects Life Without Barriers’ belief that solutions are most effective when shaped by the people who will use them.
The AI tool will analyse subtle cues that might indicate a health concern and provide guidance on the next steps. This could include suggesting a GP visit, a check-in with a specialist, or making adjustments to daily routines to support better health.
The technology goes further by supporting communication between people with intellectual disability, their families, and health providers. For example, the tool will generate clear summaries of symptoms and progress, ensuring health professionals have the right information to make decisions.
Life Without Barriers is one of several service providers partnering in this project, alongside Aruma, Community Living Australia, National Centre of Excellence in Intellectual Disability Health, the Central and Eastern Sydney Primary Health Network, and others. Working together ensures the research captures diverse perspectives, including those from regional and rural communities where health access can be particularly challenging.
The project will roll out in three stages: development, user testing, and a pilot trial comparing AI-supported care with usual care. Across each stage, feedback will be gathered to refine the tool, ensuring it is inclusive and effective.
If successful, the tool has the potential to set a new benchmark for how technology can be used to improve health outcomes. It could mean fewer preventable hospital visits, earlier interventions, and more personalised care, all contributing to a better quality of life for people with intellectual disability.
At Life Without Barriers, we believe everyone has the right to accessible, high-quality healthcare. Know Me, Support Me shows what is possible when technology, inclusion, and collaboration come together, creating solutions that ensure people with intellectual disability are recognised, respected, and equipped to live healthier lives.
