Lisa
My name is Lisa, and I have an acquired brain injury.
I chose to interview Scope as it is a disability organisation dealing with, among other things, communication.
When it comes to communication access, is there a difference between the support provided to people with disabilities, and the support provided to their families and those close to them?
Maree
Communication access highlights that support needs to be provided at two levels. First, there is a need for direct support to people with communication disabilities so that they can learn to communicate effectively in a way that is best for them. This is where the support for individuals and families is so important.
These days I hope the support for these two groups wouldn't be too different. I hope the parents would be in sync and supportive of how their child can and wants to communicate and what they want to do with their life, as opposed to the past where parents may have had low expectations for their child and staff may have had to assist parents to let their child learn and experience different ways to communicate and have goals for themselves.
The second level of support is that which is provided to communities, and this is where Scope’s communication access work has the greatest impact. It supports the broader public, and staff who hold the key to unlocking the inclusion and participation for everyone. It may be staff at a train station, staff at a bank, staff at your local council, cafe or gym.
In this way, the community becomes aware, skilled and confident to communicate with people with communication difficulties. And people with communication difficulties and their families benefit in feeling they can go anywhere and feel welcomed and comfortable.
Lisa
Thank you, that was quite comprehensive.
Barb?
Barbara
We know that historically the emphasis has been on training the person with the communication disability. We know that it's only half the journey towards achieving inclusion and participation.
We need to give skills, insight, awareness to members of the community, and this is what communication access is. It's moved away from the individual and onto the community.
More and more, I think speech pathologists are beginning to realise that communication is a two-way process, and both parties need to be effective communicators. And that the barriers are not necessarily in the individual, but the barriers are in the community, and in people who are communication partners. And that's where we choose to put our effort into creating change so that people can be included.
Lisa
What changes are needed in the area of communication access to improve the lives of people with disability?
Maree
For me, I would like to be able to go anywhere by myself and know my method of communication would be recognised and accepted in the same way as verbal communication. So, I suppose the changes needed are more education so that everybody recognises and accepts various methods of communication.
What evidence from the research shows us, is that the key to access and inclusion is attitude change through greater awareness. A positive attitude is important for everyone with access needs. Not only people with disability. There is great diversity in our communities and everyone should feel welcome and respected.
However, communication access goes one step further. It says positive attitudes must be accompanied by staff having communication skills and communication tools to help them communicate with someone who may not communicate verbally using speech. These tools may be picture-based message cards, boards or books that staff have with them at all times.
We have wonderful disability policies in Australia, and we have an anti-discrimination act. But nowhere is it law that inclusion is part of practice. And nowhere is communication access identified as the way to address communication barriers. This is what needs to change.
Despite this, change is happening. I sit on the Parliament of Victoria, Accessibility Group, which is working towards implementing their Disability Access Plan. Because people with communication disability have been on this committee from the beginning, their plan includes creating accessibility at all levels, including communication access. So, a big shout-out to them.
Scope has recently worked with a large bank to develop their first ever disability access plan, and since the Royal Commission into Banking, other banks are working with us to improve communication access between staff and their customers. There are eight large organisations who have been awarded a communication access license. There are also approximately 200 smaller businesses in Victoria that have been awarded a communication access license.
For me, one change I would dearly love to see is more people with communication difficulties being interviewed in mainstream media. Recently, there has been an increase in people with disabilities in the mainstream and social media talking about disability issues.
This is great, but most people being interviewed have verbal speech. I would love to see people with communication difficulties being interviewed in a meaningful way. So this has been a great opportunity.
Lisa
Thank you. Anything you’d like to add, Barbara?
Barbara
Yeah, I think the great strength of the work that we do is the audit process and the, what we call, sustainability process. So we have a three-year cycle in which staff have a refresher training, staff are reassessed, and tools are reviewed. And through the sustainability plan, standards are then maintained in a business, and we feel that this is the most robust way in which we can make sure that once a business has been issued with a communication access license, those standards will remain ever.
We want to see communities everywhere, in all aspects, in all trades, in all sectors, being communication accessible.
Lisa
Thank you. It's been great to interview you both. And I believe you're doing work which will hopefully amount to something really positive in the community.
Office of the Public Advocate
