In the Athens News special section this week, I found two articles dealing with transportation for folks with developmental disabilities in Athens County. The first article reported on a pilot program called Athens On Demand Transit (AODT) that is designed to help people with DD and the elderly to get to appointments and other events not related to services already supplied by the ACBDD.
I am impressed and encouraged that such services exist in Athens County. I am vaguely aware that there is a network of support for people with disabilities in Athens County, but--with the region being so poor--I am surprised to learn just how strong and supportive that network is. According to the article, three different agencies (ACBDD, DD Council, HAPCAP) partnered cooperatively to make this program a reality. That's incredible! I was also impressed that the program is available to seniors, who are often a forgotten group. The second, shorter article discussed briefly the existing transportation available in Athens County for people headed to existing ACBDD programming. Again, the resources (several buses, vans, and cars) dedicated to helping people with disabilities is impressive. I'm sure there are still issues related to using the services, but I find the fact that such a poor county has such thorough and thoughtful support to be encouraging.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Federal Probe of Group Homes
I stumbled upon this article today about a senator in Connecticut calling for a federal probe into the conditions of privately-run group homes. According to the article, there have been an alarming number of deaths in recent years in his state from abuse, neglect, or medical errors, and he wants to instigate a national investigation into the issue.
Having just talked in class recently about the condition of large institutions in the last century, I was not expecting to see an article like this pop up in my current news feed. The sense I had was that such widespread abuses were largely a thing of the past, though of course abuses still occur.
I cannot tell if this is evidence that privitization of services with public funds leads to valuing profits and "the bottom line" over quality of care, or if the good news is that the public funding is what seems to be prompting the investigation into abuses in the group homes. I can say that the debate over public or private funding of services for the disabled is disheartening. Without proper free support, how is a person with a disability supposed to engage in modern culture in such a way that allows them to not be poor? And if they are poor, how can they avoid abuse and neglect in the name of profit? We haven't been able to work out solutions for non-disabled people in poverty, so why should I expect that those in need of special services would get the care and recognition they deserve?
Having just talked in class recently about the condition of large institutions in the last century, I was not expecting to see an article like this pop up in my current news feed. The sense I had was that such widespread abuses were largely a thing of the past, though of course abuses still occur.
I cannot tell if this is evidence that privitization of services with public funds leads to valuing profits and "the bottom line" over quality of care, or if the good news is that the public funding is what seems to be prompting the investigation into abuses in the group homes. I can say that the debate over public or private funding of services for the disabled is disheartening. Without proper free support, how is a person with a disability supposed to engage in modern culture in such a way that allows them to not be poor? And if they are poor, how can they avoid abuse and neglect in the name of profit? We haven't been able to work out solutions for non-disabled people in poverty, so why should I expect that those in need of special services would get the care and recognition they deserve?
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Down's Syndrome births drop despite ADA passage
This article on the Huffington Post website outlined some troubling information regarding the birth rate of children with Down's Syndrome and also presents an interesting perspective on the cultural dynamics that might be affecting it. The article notes that--though it seems counter-intuitive--the rate of children born with Down's Syndrome has dropped by 25% since the passage of the ADA by President Bush. One might assume that the protections afforded by the ADA would influence parents to bring babies with disabilities to term more often, but the data suggests this is not so. The authors then cite several news reports and media depictions, the likes of which probably create a cultural bias that continues to skew parents against carrying a fetus with Down's Syndrome to term.
As a new parent, I am particularly sensitive to this issue. It disappoints me to read that people are presumably understanding the "responsible" choice to be termination of pregnancy rather than bringing a child with a disability into the world. I can understand why they might choose this if they learned their unborn child had Down's; as soon as the public movement against using the word "retard" found success, the word "Down's" became the new substitute. I've heard it used by kids on the internet and kids in public to describe their friends and enemies. I fear we have a long way to go before our society is so enlightened that we stop taking advantage of the disadvantaged.
As a new parent, I am particularly sensitive to this issue. It disappoints me to read that people are presumably understanding the "responsible" choice to be termination of pregnancy rather than bringing a child with a disability into the world. I can understand why they might choose this if they learned their unborn child had Down's; as soon as the public movement against using the word "retard" found success, the word "Down's" became the new substitute. I've heard it used by kids on the internet and kids in public to describe their friends and enemies. I fear we have a long way to go before our society is so enlightened that we stop taking advantage of the disadvantaged.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Honda: Powered Walking Assistance
I recently learned of two products developed by Honda that are currently in the prototype and testing phase, designed to help people with limited use of their legs to regain mobility. I have been wondering for years why we don't see more of these types of devices in actual use, and was excited to learn more.
The Stride Management Assist is a hip and thigh harness that offers motorized assistance to the user's legs, increasing their stride length and allowing them to walk longer distances. I could easily see this being used by the elderly and people with limited use of their leg muscles, perhaps the result of degenerative or congenital conditions. I have known people who have had hip replacements, for example, who had limited use of their new hip because they didn't have quite the full range of motion they had pre-surgery. This device would help them open their stride and potentially gain flexibility and range-of-motion faster.
The second product in development by Honda is the Bodyweight Support System, which adds motorized support primarily to the knees, thereby reducing the burden of the leg muscles to carry the body. While still in testing, I could see this being used by many of the same people as might use the first device. In watching the provided videos, I'm wondering what benefit these devices would have for people with arthritis or other joint and ligament disability.
This sort of technology feels overdue, but I am very encouraged to see it in development. As batteries become lighter and motors get smaller and stronger, I would hope assistive technologies such as these would rise to the challenge of being practical and beneficial for restoring the activity levels of people with any number of lower-body disabilities. Maintenance of activity levels is a primary predictor for long-term happiness and health, and none of us are getting any younger!
The Stride Management Assist is a hip and thigh harness that offers motorized assistance to the user's legs, increasing their stride length and allowing them to walk longer distances. I could easily see this being used by the elderly and people with limited use of their leg muscles, perhaps the result of degenerative or congenital conditions. I have known people who have had hip replacements, for example, who had limited use of their new hip because they didn't have quite the full range of motion they had pre-surgery. This device would help them open their stride and potentially gain flexibility and range-of-motion faster.
The second product in development by Honda is the Bodyweight Support System, which adds motorized support primarily to the knees, thereby reducing the burden of the leg muscles to carry the body. While still in testing, I could see this being used by many of the same people as might use the first device. In watching the provided videos, I'm wondering what benefit these devices would have for people with arthritis or other joint and ligament disability.
This sort of technology feels overdue, but I am very encouraged to see it in development. As batteries become lighter and motors get smaller and stronger, I would hope assistive technologies such as these would rise to the challenge of being practical and beneficial for restoring the activity levels of people with any number of lower-body disabilities. Maintenance of activity levels is a primary predictor for long-term happiness and health, and none of us are getting any younger!
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Frida Kahlo
I was flipping through a copy of a recent TIME Magazine when I came across a brief article about the art of Frida Kahlo being used as inspiration for a fashion line. The pictures they showed of the fashion line itself were rather uninspiring, but the short write-up on the painter caused me to do a little more research on the Mexican painter herself.
I was struck first with her giftedness as a child but second with the tragedy and pain that befell her in her childhood. That pain seems to have dominated her life--or at least her art. Having survived polio as a child, she was in a terrible bus accident at age 18 which permanently damaged her right leg, spinal column, and uterus, among other injuries. These injuries brought her recurring pain throughout her life and led to three failed pregnancies.
She started painting while she was in a full body cast recuperating from the accident, and she painted the subject with which she was the most familiar: herself. In looking at her accumulated works I see a great deal of majesty and pain, often intermingled. Looking at her art creates conflicted emotion for me about her disabilities: I simultaneously feel a measure of pity at the pain represented in the images and an understanding that the images likely would not have the gravity they do without the pain her disabilities caused. So much of art stems from the artist's physical or emotional pain, and it is a continual wonder that such beauty and inspiration--sometimes even in tragic images--can be the lasting expression of the pain of disability.
I was struck first with her giftedness as a child but second with the tragedy and pain that befell her in her childhood. That pain seems to have dominated her life--or at least her art. Having survived polio as a child, she was in a terrible bus accident at age 18 which permanently damaged her right leg, spinal column, and uterus, among other injuries. These injuries brought her recurring pain throughout her life and led to three failed pregnancies.
She started painting while she was in a full body cast recuperating from the accident, and she painted the subject with which she was the most familiar: herself. In looking at her accumulated works I see a great deal of majesty and pain, often intermingled. Looking at her art creates conflicted emotion for me about her disabilities: I simultaneously feel a measure of pity at the pain represented in the images and an understanding that the images likely would not have the gravity they do without the pain her disabilities caused. So much of art stems from the artist's physical or emotional pain, and it is a continual wonder that such beauty and inspiration--sometimes even in tragic images--can be the lasting expression of the pain of disability.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Downton Abbey: Sir Anthony Strallan
I've only recently been watching the BBC produced show Downton Abbey, which takes place in Britain immediately after the first World War. I was struck by the show's treatment of one character in particular, Sir Anthony Strallan. A middle-aged widower, Strallan sustained an injury during the war that left him without the use of his right arm. Before the war, he was seen as an eligible bachelor and one of the matronly characters was actively trying to set him up with her granddaughters. After the war, when he returned with a (presumably) paralyzed arm, the family's attitude toward Sir Strallan has changed dramatically. Not realizing that he is now disabled, the grandmother is embarrassed that she invited him to tea with the granddaughter that had previously been in a relationship with Strallan. Throughout the course of the next few episodes, Strallan becomes engaged to marry one of the granddaughters and the rest of her family adjusts to the relationship with various degrees of acceptance. The story culminates in Strallan abandoning his bride-to-be at the altar, overwhelmed with feelings of guilt that he is causing her to waste her life caring for an old man.
It seems outlandish that the family's attitude toward the man would have changed so dramatically as a direct result of his injury. It is made clear that Strallan is a qualified Lord and therefore socially would make an acceptable husband in the dual-class imperialist system. In the story, Strallan was even involved in high-level diplomatic negotiations before the war, though this prestige has no bearing to the family when compared to his disability. Socially, his disability has instantly made him an unacceptable life partner.
I would like to think that this sort of thing did not happen in modern society, but I am reminded of the injured military veterans who return home only to be eventually rejected by their partners or families. In truth, with the advent of high explosives and the nature of modern warfare, disabilities caused by war are likely far more severe than they were during the first World War. Times are improved inasmuch as there is no official social prohibition against marrying a person with a disability, but the unmentioned stigma certainly still exists.
It seems outlandish that the family's attitude toward the man would have changed so dramatically as a direct result of his injury. It is made clear that Strallan is a qualified Lord and therefore socially would make an acceptable husband in the dual-class imperialist system. In the story, Strallan was even involved in high-level diplomatic negotiations before the war, though this prestige has no bearing to the family when compared to his disability. Socially, his disability has instantly made him an unacceptable life partner.
I would like to think that this sort of thing did not happen in modern society, but I am reminded of the injured military veterans who return home only to be eventually rejected by their partners or families. In truth, with the advent of high explosives and the nature of modern warfare, disabilities caused by war are likely far more severe than they were during the first World War. Times are improved inasmuch as there is no official social prohibition against marrying a person with a disability, but the unmentioned stigma certainly still exists.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Prominent Paralympian Charged with Murder
I was reading this news article today about a South African athlete who had both of his legs amputated below the knee as a child. He was charged with murder today in the shooting death of his girlfriend. Though I'm not familiar with him (I don't keep up with sports much in general), Oscar Pistorius was apparently something of a famous name in the Paralympics and the Olympics as the first person with prostheses to be allowed to compete in the Olympics. In reading this article, it strikes me that he is treated the same as any other athlete who gets caught in a crime-related news segment. There is very little discussion of his disability but a much stronger focus on his alleged personality quirks.
I clicked through a few more stories about Pistorius and found this one, in which he reports some of the pranks and bullying he experienced while at boarding school. I'm sure that his lack of legs caused him to stand out from his peers, thus making him a target. Catching his bed on fire seems a particularly cruel prank, and so does hiding his "day legs" on a regular basis. I get the sense that pranks and bullying were a regular part of boarding school, but I also get the sense that he received more than his fair share of abuse. I wonder more than a little if that adolescent abuse contributed to his reported personality difficulties. Different people respond different ways to such cruelty, but we are all affected.
I clicked through a few more stories about Pistorius and found this one, in which he reports some of the pranks and bullying he experienced while at boarding school. I'm sure that his lack of legs caused him to stand out from his peers, thus making him a target. Catching his bed on fire seems a particularly cruel prank, and so does hiding his "day legs" on a regular basis. I get the sense that pranks and bullying were a regular part of boarding school, but I also get the sense that he received more than his fair share of abuse. I wonder more than a little if that adolescent abuse contributed to his reported personality difficulties. Different people respond different ways to such cruelty, but we are all affected.
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