Accessment

One of the main reasons I started inclusivelivingconcepts was to talk about the importance of choice and control. Having access to different choices and control over how you live your life is a basic human right. However, people don’t always have choice and control. This is especially true when disability makes you reliant on other for basic needs.

Staff equals choice

I mentioned in a previous post that my PAs were starting soon and that I would share details with you lovely readers about my journey. My two PAs started the week of the 17^th August 2020. Both of them seem lovely and employing them is my first step back to choice and control since COVID-19. What I didn’t count on is that the agency that I’d contracted back in March 2020 to assist me would also want to start on the 17^th of August! I employed the agency while I was waiting for the paperwork on my PAs to be processed and completed. The DBS checks took forever even before COVID-19!

People are like buses!

The week starting 17th August 2020, I had seven different people come to my house! Worse they were invited! I was putting myself through meeting these people in the hope that I’d gain aceess to freedom and control in the long run. There’s a well-known expression about buses and them all coming along at once. After eight months of having no formal care suddenly people were everywhere!

This is very positive in one way as it gets things moving. It was obvious to me at age eleven and is now even more obvious at thirty-four that I can’t rely on my family forever. They deserve choice and control as well! I’ve moved out of my family home three times in my life so far but it has never stuck permanently because of my lack of choice, control and the barriers in my way!

Money facilitates choice and control

I’m still fighting for a bigger direct payments budget. Having the money to pay people for what I actually need would go a long way to removing barriers and afford me more choice. Money does that for everyone, disabled or not. Money makes the world go round!

My petition for more money to meet my needs isn’t going anywhere. Just recently my social worker applied for the emergency COVID-19 fund as CHC, (Continuing Health Care,) isn’t currently assessing people so there is no accessing funding from them! Despite this my social worker was told I’m not eligible and advised her to tell me to use a Shewee!

What is a Shewee?

A Shewee is a plastic device to enable women to pee standing up. Never fear lovely readers this isn’t going to become an in-depth account of my personal habits. I could do a whole separate post ranting about how if I could stand up I could probably transfer and not need the device in the first place! Let me know if you’re interested in reading that, but my current thinking is that I’ll bore you to death, so let me just say, in fairness, that some disabled people have apparently found it helpful.

I’ve tried it and many variations thereof and am unable to use them sadly. Not to mention that this device, if useful, would only solve one of the things I need assistance with. My Social worker has advised me to put in an official complaint and I’m still waiting for the payroll paperwork to be completed in order for my PA’s to be on my payroll and have payslips every month. This is despite the fact that they have now been working for me for almost three weeks!

Inclusive access gives choice and control

In other, more exciting news. I’ve started writing for Access Rating as a content writer. The company is run by disabled people and they aim to improve disability access by offering businesses access audits and encouraging people to record the accessibility of the places they visit. They have created an app that enables anyone to rate venues based on how accessible they are. It’s an idea that’s been done before via review websites but this is the first app that I know of. The rating system is really easy and takes less than 30 seconds unless you really want to add detail.

I’m really excited to be working with them as it helps me influence greater change and choice for a more inclusive society. The app gives everyone the chance to have their say and is free to download. Check it out and rate your corner of the world. 🙂

Personal Health Budgets give choice and control

If you’ve checked out my Facebook page recently you’ll see that I shared a link to BBC news which tells the struggle of a man in Wales to be allowed to manage his care package through a Personal Health Budget. You can probably tell that I am not a big fan of the way Social Care is run but I was genuinely shocked to learn that Personal Health Budgets aren’t an option in Wales! They may be a headache but they do offer the most choice and control for a lot of people.

What is a Personal Health Budget?

A Personal Health Budget is different from the Direct Payment I receive through Social Services. As I’m asking for a bigger care package my Social Worker is trying to get me funding via CHC. If this happens my needs will be fully funded at least partially by the NHS. I could still receive my money as a Direct Payment. As things stand at the moment Rhys and others like him can’t. The NHS decides what he receives and who provides that. I’ve since reached out to Rhys and been given permission to send him some questions. My interview with his partner Sam is now published.

I’m so grateful for the choice and control that I do have and having that inspires me to improve things for us all. This keeps me going, especially as for the last month both my electric wheelchairs require repairs! My private Power Chair has an as yet undiagnosed technical fault and the wheelchair given me by wheelchair services has unsuitable footplates and armrests meaning I can’t leave the house in either one! I have two chairs and I only need one to be working. When I next post hopefully they will both be in working order. What was that about buses?

Until next time.