Disability Perspectives

I volunteer my time to help McMaster OT (Occupational Therapy) students with an annual project that they do for their courses, giving my perspective on my daily routine occurrences living with a disability. I tell these students that they need to advocate for people with disabilities. Some people may not be interested in caring to learn more about disabilities, everyone has their different interests. As long as these students commit themselves and try their best, they should not take rejection personally.
I give a broad range of experiences, mainly focusing on school and the needs that I have there. Since institutions play a big role in anyone’s life, not just a person with a disability, it is important that educational faculties know how to properly accommodate someone’s needs.
I find sometimes that their questions are too generic, and I hope to focus their perspectives to more specific issues. A lot of these students are young, and I know they can bring a fresh new insights to these issues, if they take things they’ve heard from other participants into account. I am more confident giving my answers, as I know they are enthusiastic. I always encourage them to take what they’ve learned and promote the main issues at hand. If they have any questions, to take them to the accessibility centres themselves, and conduct their own research. This creates a chain reaction for everyone involved. They take their issue to the centre, and this not only educates the staff on changes that need to be made, but it helps the students that are in need of the changes.
I always like that they bring an OT and a PT (Physiotherapist), because they have different roles in their practices and have different concerns. There is usually a male and a female, which also allows for different perspectives on the situation.