Leaving your mark on DISABILITY

Volunteering

The value of volunteers can not be measured in words. Volunteers play a vital and much valued role in the disability sector. In fact, a lot of the programs that function to assist people with disability, their carers and older people; involve the gracious and hard work of a volunteer.

Volunteering in the disability sector is a way to effect positive change; through the sacrifice of time you are given the opportunity to undertake a labour of love. And the rewards given from these experiences are ever lasting; they are carried on the very footsteps that you take through life's journey. Becoming a volunteer is a very selfless act, and an act that often fills a small empty space the heart of others, although small this space is permanent.

I have volunteered for numerous organisations, using my skills to assist in the ways that I thought were best for me. In some ways I felt a certain grain of selfishness in the positive emotive outcome of my experiences. I also gained an irreversible change in myself, as my life took new directions with new possibilities.

You may volunteer in the disability and aged sector in any manner, whether it be as a carer, at a disability organisation, as an advocate for disability and the rights of people with disability, as a volunteer for disability events and activities, or simply by volunteering a moment to assist an older person or person with disability with their groceries. Volunteering your time is simple and the rewards are plenty:

• You can leave footsteps on another’s heart, something that will never be forgotten;

• You can become more involved with the community, in particularly the disability community;

• You can meet new people and make new life-long friends;

• You can support children and young people with disability, older people, their families and the organisations that support them;

• You can gain new skills, knowledge and understanding;

• You can feel rewarded and appreciated;

• You can develop life skills;

• You can experience unique opportunities;

• You can develop a lifetime of special memories; and

• You can have fun doing it!

The personal sacrifice of time in your day is small when considering the rewards listed. Perhaps it is time for us to reward ourselves by supporting others!

Alyssa

The Value of Information

I would like to introduce a staff member of IDEAS who would like to share her experiences of her work within the disability sector and the importance of information in empowering and motivating an individual. Information allows people with disability, their carers and families to act and to find ways to live independently, information can lead to a greater quality of life and it is often knowledge that ABLES an individual. Please enjoy her story.

I work as an Information Officer for IDEAS NSW, an information service for people with a disability.

My role is as the first point of contact for people looking for information to assist them. I try to find the right service for the person to gain assistance from, whether that be supplier's of equipment, or accessible holiday options etc. Basically anything that we are asked in regard to disability we try to find the answer for. This makes my job challenging as I search for different things to suit different people daily. I never know what the next question will be!

I find my work particularly rewarding as I see people empowered by the knowledge they gain to assist them in their daily lives. This may be a little thing, like where to find a shower chair, or something seemingly larger like where to get financial assistance for oxygen support. This information empowers people with a disability and helps them to live more independent lives. For example, that information can enable a person to decide where to buy a set of small wheelchair wheels and a battery which in turn affords them significant independence and their carer relief.

Another example was a recent enquiry from a couple wanting to travel across the Nullabor Plains. We discovered how many accessible toilets are available. This allowed them to have the holiday they didn't think they could.
Information itself is necessary, particularly at turning points in a person's life or when a new situation arises. That's when it is very important to have a single point of contact that makes finding the solution less confusing. We often find that people are frustrated when they call us as they have tried so many other numbers to find the information or because they haven't been listened to. When they can contact us first, we can do the hard work for them.

Part of my job that I particularly enjoy is researching articles on accessible travel for our bi-monthly newsletter. I gain a lot of information for this research from our accessible accommodation database which I also help to maintain. As we are so busy answering enquiries this database is sometimes hard to keep up to date, so please call us to make sure you are getting the most up to date information on 1800 029 904.

My move from the dental industry to the disability sector has been thoroughly rewarding and I have found satisfying work in rural NSW. The skills I am learning I will be able to take with me anywhere.

This article was published on the carecareers website.

The Story of Debapriya Roy

Sharing Disability Around the World

Hello, I am Debapriya Roy from Rangamati, Hill District of Bangladesh. I would like to share my story and tell you some things about me. I completed my Higher Secondary Degree and then was admitted to an Engineering University for higher study in 1974. In that same year I was accepted to take a scholarship to study in France.

On the 16th of January 1975 in the evening, I rode my motorbike to say goodbye to my friends as I was leaving for my scholarship the next day. But life had given me a different plan. During my travel I was involved in a collision which led to me being taken to the hospital. After a few hours, when my senses came back, I realised I lost the power to move both my legs.

I had a very bad bedsore and I spent one month in the local hospital without proper treatment. One of our family friends advised my parents to shift me to Memorial Christian Hospital, at that time he told my parents that in that hospital was the famous Dr Viggo Brand Olsen MD. After a month I was shifted to that hospital. I was under treatment of the great Doctor named Olsen (who is the founder of Mission Hospital) and physiotherapist Dr Larry Golen. They assisted me to improve as much as my health permitted.

Dr Olsen told me that my C-7 dislocated. I can sit on a wheelchair and walk a little with a parallel bar.

With the help of my Doctor I learnt Pathology and worked a year in that hospital. 3 years after the accident I came back to my home town, Rangamati. Disabled life is really very had in my country. There are no jobs available for disabled people, no financial help so it becomes a burden for families. If you visit my country you will see many disabled begging in the street for food with no good shelter to live in. Many live beside the road.
I have learnt how to help my people by doing translations into our language, Chakma. Everything I do shows that hard work must be done to assist these people.

I am trying to find an organisation or someone to help people with disability to access land and shelter, instead of living on the street. You are welcome to come to my country and to help assist people with disability.

Debapriya Roy

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