#Disability Services

[autisticmind]

Do you guys ever feel so much sudden rage at society for failing to provide the bare minimum support you needed/need to survive/thrive that you have to actually time. out. your mind for a while to calm down????

[not-a-medical-student]

Photo from ECAD

Important information for those not familiar with service dogs:

Don't touch or pet without permission.

Do not remove a service dog from a passed out person, even if they are resting on top of them. That may be the dog’s job during an episode, so just call an ambulance.

Do not let children pet service dogs without permission, It's usually best to tell them you shouldn't pet at all because the dog is at work.

Emotional support animals are not the same as service dogs and are not medically necessary.

Any dog that sits in a shopping cart or purse is not a service dog.

There are idiots out there who fake service dogs, but don't accuse people of faking if you don't know how training is done.

Although service dogs are well trained, their work can be interfered with by loud noises and especially untrained, faked service or emotional support dogs being in spaces expected to only allow service dogs and no other animals. This is especially prevalent in Walmart and other public spaces.

Service dogs are still dogs, if you see one in public with someone it's best to leave the dog alone completely. Even merely making eye contact with the dog can distract it and cause him or her to miss something important. Dogs are very susceptible to human eye contact, it's in their DNA.

And of course don't try to feed them or talk to them while they are on duty.

ALSO

Some service dogs are trained to smell or otherwise detect specific disorders and alert their human in any number of ways. For example, if someone with diabetes blood sugar is too low/high, their dog can smell that and may alert them by laying their head on the human's foot. If a service dog does it's alert to you or anyone who is not the owner of the dog, you should go to the doctor to get checked out because it's possible it's a real alert that the dog sensed in you.

Thank you doggies!

[cameoutstruggling93]

Open House at work today 👉😎👉

I'm not wearing healed shoes for a bit.

[cy-cyborg]

So, right before Christmas I got some good news in the NDIS front.

Turns out they DID recognise my non-physical disabilities when this funding plan started, but just...didnt tell me... or anyone else. It still says my only disability is amputation due to meningococcol on everything I have and all the paperwork, but apparently they have my documents saying that i have "very clear but unspecified cognative and developmental difficulties" (my origonal "diagnosis" if you could call it that) so my Local Area Cordinator says they've acknowledged it on their end and agreed to help with it.

Why didn't anyone realise any of this? Since that should mean I have funding to support those disabilities in my plan?

Turns out the answer is just that my plan is REALLY fucking weird. Outside of my LAC, no one ive spoken to has seen anything like it, Something about the way it's structured is really bizarre, which is why my prosthetist, wheelchair maker and other providers had so much trouble getting paid last year: the category they usually take their payment from for 99% of their clients doesn't exist in my plan. I had the funding, but it was somewhere else, and no one told me how to get it because they thought I already knew. None of this was helped that I never got a copy of my plan myself until the advocate pushed for it. Apparently, someone was supposed to tell me all of this and explain it all, but I suspect that didn't happen because this plan started during the later Covid lockdowns, and everything was chaos.

So good news, I have funding to get help with daily tasks and other stuff that im struggling with relating to my non-physical disabilities. A lot actually. Over 2 years worth of funding.

Bad news though, Whatever's left over at the end of this plan period - 4 or 5 months from now - will be used to judge weather I actually need that funding or not. When the plan renews, if it's not all used, they might determine I didn't need it after all, and they are cracking down on this type of funding so they're unlikely to accept "I didn't know I had it".

That's a problem for after new-years though. Right now I'm just happy I don't have to spend several more months jumping through beurocratic hoops for the NDIS just to get some help. Well, any more than I already had to, lol.

Now I can focus on dealing with centrelink next year instead... yay...

ID: a gif of someone running across a field. the caption says: "[screaming]" /end Id

[an-undercover-bi]

I am having to deal with so much Disability Services bullshit at my university right now so. . .

Here’s a sick academia-related tip for every chronically ill person out there:

Document. Everything. For real.

• Take detailed notes during accessibility-related meetings.

• Print out any accessibility related emails (your emails you send, their emails they send) with the dates clearly specified.

• Record the accessibility meetings themselves*.

It’s also worth noting that simply choosing not to delete the emails you send may not be sufficient depending on the email provider’s policy regarding old emails and how stable your internet connection/access to internet is.

So, paper copies are best.

To keep the emails: print them out, stick them in a folder or a binder and use sticky tabs to label the general subject discussed.

Trust me. This will come in handy.

You have rights. Exercise them.

* Check on your country’s/state’s laws prior to recording others without gathering consent first. These vary by country and locality. In my state—Virginia—it’s a single-party state, so only one “party” [in my case, me] needs to know the meeting is recorded). Make sure you know the laws in your area regarding this before you record.

[autisticlee]

so many services that can help with disability or medical needs are based on progress and working to make you not need them. why are they so against long term/life long help and management?!

for example, i need PT but for life. my hypermibility won't magically be better after a month of PT. doing it alone at home always results in injuring myself because no one corrects me doing wrong things. stopping doesn't help either. but there's no service for long term or life!!!! only private trainers that want thousands of dollars a month. another example is I need a case manager to help me do phone calls and male appointments but you need to call to make an appointment to get. you need to listen to a long list of info and provide your info over the phone. what if you can't do that? out of luck I guess (I only got their email because my therapist called and asked them for it for me. it's not available on their website)

good health is a luxury for the rich and disability services are only accessible for the abled. it sucks.

[bookquotesfrombooks]

“Doctors hold positions of power and dominance over the people in their care. They are gatekeepers of services, medications, and information. Their credentials grant them the authority to make life-or-death decisions, and their directives often go unquestioned. With that power comes great responsibility, so my expectations are uncompromising.”

Meghan Ashburn

I Will Die On This Hill

[ittyalfie]

Hi!

The need for support and services for autistic people has increased so much, even in the past year.

That is why I’ve committed to Run for autism this October. Please help me raise vital funds to change the lives of children and adults on the autism spectrum and support my Run for autism 2024.

I’ve personally used Aspect’s helpful Autism Alert card in emergency medical situations. And Aspect offer a range of support for Autistic individuals. It can be hard to find services who understand or even know what autism is like and how it can be unique for different people!

Aspect help people access NDIS services specific to autistic needs, and have community support and programs.

As well as aiming for my goal to walk/run 40km to raise funds for crucial support, I also want to add a goal to do drawings for donations! I wanna achieve these goals! Please donate or share, and leave a comment, message or ask for a drawing.

I want to promote awareness and the value of sharing personal experiences. Drawing character art is one of my special interests and it would mean so much to me to help in this way.

https://www.runforautism.org.au/fundraisers/cuddlecosmos

Click below! Please reblog :)

Your donation will help create a more autism-friendly world for children and adults on the autism spectrum. I’m actually so excited to be able to do this. I feel like the more we can help each other, the more it can enable others who were previously unable to help, to then contribute in their own ways to other causes. :)

Thank you so much!

Bit from Cuddle cosmos

PS If you want to join Run for autism, you can sign up via the link as well!

[chronic-chronic]

I am soon going to send my application to the city's disability services. I hope it'll be approved and I'll get transportation!

[thedashproject]

[ladymalchav]

Hey, if you're reading this and you're disabled (officially or not) do yourself a favor and check out these two orgs: United Cerebral Palsy and your state's Rehabilitation Commission. These two orgs are how I got all my adaptive technology AND a homemaker.  

UCP doesn't require a doctor's note. They got me a bath chair, a no-touch can opener, a UV lamp, and a bunch of other stuff. These are what they call adaptive technology. They eve offered to set me up with Smart Home tech! For FREE! There's lots of stuff they can get you. 

UCP CAN get you a homemaker, but I didn't go through them for some reason I don't remember. ANYWAY! The Rehabilitation Commission! It's known as MassRehab here, so just Google search for [your state] Rehabilitation Commission. Through them I DID get a homemaker. She cleans, she shops for me, she could even cook for me if I needed it. I don't remember what all I had to show them to get her, but it's worth finding out! The RC can also help you get back to school AND PAY FOR IT, but that's another conversation. 

So, yeah. If you're disabled at all, the tiniest bit, check out these orgs. They have been lifesavers! Feel free to ask me questions, and I'll try to help.(5/5)

[underleveledjosh]

Voc rehab says that there has been several unsuccessful attempts to contact me. They have not attempted to contact me, or perhaps they somehow got my phone number wrong? "In an effort to provide continued services, we have made several unsuccessful attempts to contact you. If we don not hear from you within ten working days the assumption will be made you are no longer interested in services and your cases will be closed."

Bitch what the fuck you completely fail to contact ME within ten business days without sending me a letter and you are putting it on ME? How about get your shit together. If I don't hear from them today, I won't be continuing services with them from now on.

I have come to the conclusion that Vocational Rehabilitation is a ploy for cheap labor. You get paid, but only minimum wage. I haven't learned much job skills at all. It's a scam.

[cameoutstruggling93]

Today was a bit rough, got my Mental Health First Aid certification but the topics of bipolar, suicide, non-threatening self harm, and panic disorder were only SLIGHTLY triggering.

So! Came home, changed, and took a weed gummy cause I can't smoke well due to this facacta cough. My brain is feeling less....heavy. Self care its best.

[bleakbeauty]

It's been very difficult getting good help from job services. I've gone through several job coaches, and none have been effective. One placed me in the job I have now, and I don't like it. He made bad assumptions about what the job would be, so he gave me bad information about what to expect from the job. Now I'm trying to get out of my current job and find another one.

My experience working with a job services provider has led me to believe that job coaches aren't trained in any way to interact with disabled people. Most just seem to be random individuals off the street who know how to use job search websites. My current job coach talks a lot, but she's a poor communicator and an even worse listener.

I can't believe that she's ever worked with an autistic person before. I've tried to explain my specific social challenges, but she ignores me. There's no malice in this; she's simply the kind of person that isn't capable of understanding social disabilities. She also disregards what I say I want in a job. If she has any kind of training or special aptitude, she can't be drawing on it.

The process of working with job services to try to find a job that doesn't make me miserable has itself made me miserable.

[sowilo1]

What Are Disability Services?

Disability services are programs that help people with disabilities live a full life. This includes helping them access employment, housing, transportation and more. They also offer support for caregivers who need relief from the stress of caring for someone with a disability.

The old way of thinking about disability focused on an impairment that needed to be treated or cured. A new way focuses on the interaction between an individual and their environment.

Services

People with disabilities are a diverse group whose lives are affected in many different ways. A disability can affect any part of the body or mind and may include a physical impairment, an activity limitation or a mental impairment.

CUNY campuses offer an array of services that ensure students with disabilities are supported and can participate in all aspects of the student life experience. These programs are based on nationally regarded best practices in postsecondary disability services.

Once a student registers with Disability Services (DS) and submits documentation, they will be assigned a coordinator who will review their documentation and schedule an intake meeting in person or via ZOOM to discuss accommodation needs. Accommodations are determined on a case-by-case basis and take into account a student’s individual needs, limitations and strengths.

DS also collaborates with faculty and staff to make campus physically and academically accessible. DS accommodations are designed to help students succeed in a course without altering curriculum or evaluation standards.

Accommodations

Accommodations are changes to a program, environment or job that allow an individual with a disability to access the same benefits and privileges as someone without one. They are based on an assessment of the person’s ability and need for accommodations. Examples of accommodations include sign language interpreters, specialized software, flexible work schedules, and modified assignments or testing.

Federal law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. For example, a person who is deaf may need an interpreter for a job interview. An employee who has diabetes might need to have frequent breaks during the day to check and monitor blood sugar levels.

The majority of the work at DS centers around providing students with reasonable accommodations. Once a student is approved for accommodations, the DS coordinator will contact them to discuss their needs and provide an overview of what the process looks like. This meeting is private and confidential.

Accessibility

Assisting students with disabilities to overcome barriers that prevent their participation in the university community and learning environment is an essential component of our mission. This involves removing environmental barriers and providing access to information and services through accommodations and adaptive technology.

It also involves supporting families to cover the extra costs that people with disabilities incur, such as purchasing disability-related equipment or undergoing therapy. These costs can be substantial, especially in low income countries. These costs could be reduced if governments provide cash allowances to help people with disabilities meet their needs.

Students must self-disclose and submit documentation through the online student portal (Symplicity Accommodate). Once approved, students can then request accommodations or academic adjustments in their courses through this system. Accommodations are designed to give students equal access to their classes while still holding them to the same academic standards as other students. These accommodations can be made at any time during the semester although it is recommended to do so as early as possible.

Community Inclusion

Community inclusion is a key way that disability support services can help individuals with disabilities feel valued and connected. It includes services that support people with IDD to engage with and be accepted in their communities, whether it’s working, finding social and familiar relationships, or participating in civic life.

This is a crucial goal, since studies show that people with disabilities are more likely to have poor health outcomes when they feel isolated from their families, friends and neighbors. Disability service providers can help address these issues by promoting community participation, helping people find and use appropriate accommodations, and advocating for laws and policies that improve access to the essential long-term services and supports millions of Americans with disabilities rely on.

To do this, social workers should regularly scour local news and resources to find new programs, funding and initiatives that may benefit their clients. They can also petition city, county and state governments to increase funding for accessibility and independent living programs.

[truthwars]

Simon Harris Must Withdraw From the Election: His Cold Response in Kanturk Highlights His Failures

Simon Harris’s dismissive response to a disability care worker in Kanturk highlights his failure to lead effectively. His refusal to engage is a sign of his lack of empathy, making him unfit for the election. Ireland deserves better leadership. #SimonHar

Simon Harris’s leadership came under scrutiny after the Kanturk incident, where he dismissed a disability care worker’s concerns. His failure to engage reflects his broader unfitness to lead. The Kanturk incident, combined with Harris’s healthcare failures, illustrates why Simon Harris must withdraw from the election. Ireland needs a leader who listens to the needs of frontline workers and…