Accessibility
Understanding the Difference Between Equality and Equity
Nurturing Inclusion for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities
Introduction:
In our pursuit of building inclusive societies, it’s important to delve into the concepts of equality and equity. While the terms may appear similar, they have distinct meanings and implications. To truly foster inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities, we must understand these differences and actively work towards nurturing equitable opportunities for all.
Defining Equality and Equity:
Equality is presented as the state of being equal, where all individuals are treated identically and have access to the same resources and opportunities. On the other hand, equity acknowledges and addresses existing disparities by providing necessary support tailored to individual needs, conditions, and abilities.
Equality vs. Equity for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities:
Applying the notions of equality and equity to individuals with intellectual disabilities highlights the significance of acknowledging their unique circumstances and adapting support accordingly.
1. Equality: The Intentions and Limitations:
Promoting equality for individuals with intellectual disabilities typically involves offering the same resources, facilities, and opportunities available to the general population. While well-intentioned, focusing solely on equality may not effectively address the specific requirements and challenges faced by individuals with cognitive impairments. Treatments must take into account the need for reasonable adaptations as well as support networks within various settings.
2. Equity: Addressing Disparities:
Equity recognizes the unequal starting points that individuals with intellectual disabilities may encounter due to their specific cognitive impairments. It involves identifying and mitigating barriers to participation and promoting fairness in access to educational, employment, and social opportunities. By acknowledging and addressing these disparities, we can create an empowering environment that values everyone’s unique journey and fosters inclusion more effectively.
Applying an Equitable Approach for Inclusion:
To promote equity and inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities, we must consider several key aspects:
1. Person-Centered Approaches:
Individuals with intellectual disabilities have varied needs, strengths, and capabilities. Implementing person-centered approaches ensures that support and accommodations are tailored to their distinct requirements, creating an equitable environment that fosters holistic development.
2. Adapted Learning Environments:
Education plays a pivotal role in empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities. Creating adapted learning environments, such as specialized classrooms, assistive technologies, and differentiated teaching strategies, helps level the playing field, promoting equal educational opportunities.
3. Employment and Career Opportunities:
Supporting individuals with intellectual disabilities in gaining meaningful employment requires an equitable approach. Accessible workplace accommodations and training programs go hand in hand, enabling individuals with intellectual disabilities to contribute their unique skills and talents to the workforce in an inclusive and fair manner.
4. Community Engagement and Social Inclusion:
An equitable and inclusive society recognizes the importance of social integration. Encouraging community involvement, adapting social spaces, creating accessible recreational activities, and promoting interpersonal connections ensures individuals with intellectual disabilities can actively participate, fostering a sense of belonging and acceptance.
Conclusion:
By understanding the differences between equality and equity, we can redefine our approaches towards inclusion for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Striving for equity ensures that everyone is given a fair chance to succeed, appreciates diverse abilities, and creates an atmosphere of acceptance and support. Embracing an equitable mindset helps build a society where individuals with intellectual disabilities can thrive, tapping into their potential and enriching our shared humanity.
Read How WIN Promotes Equality and Equity as Core Values in our Culture
Camp HeHoHa
(HEalth, HOpe, HAppiness) Summer is well underway in spite of the rainy weather. We at WIN are enjoying the not so lazy or hazy, but sometimes crazy daze of summer! Have you heard about Camp HeHoHa? It is a summer camp that many of the individuals WIN serves look forward to each year. Some have […]
Helping Vulnerable People Live Independent Lives
Please see this article published in Westlock News August 5, 2014 edition:
http://www.westlocknews.com/article/20140805/WES0301/308059991/0/wes
Westlock Independence Network works to help people stay safe and live independent lives
Individuals with disabilities in Westlock have a plethora of options available to them to live as independent a life as possible.
One of the most visible of those options is the Westlock Independence Network (WIN), which has been serving clients with various disabilities in the community since 1988.
WIN is a private, non-profit charitable organization, said executive director Greg Morris, and provides services based on what its clients need, whether that’s full-time, 24/7 care, or only checking in on the client a few times a year to keep on top of a particular issue.
But no matter the service level provided, he said WIN is what he would call a “developmental organization.”
“Our intention is to help people develop the skill and get out of the way,” he said. “We’re not there to do things for people.”
WIN’s clients have myriad types of disabilities, including developmental disabilities, physical disabilities caused by brain injuries, physical disabilities caused by diseases like multiple sclerosis, and physical disabilities caused by physical injuries.
“The only population we really haven’t served is people whose primary or only disability is a mental illness,” Morris said, adding some clients have a mental illness in addition to a disability, but not solely a mental illness.
The organization has many ways it assists its clients to live independent lives, including going so far as to enter the real estate market.
Morris explained WIN owns a house specially designed for people in wheelchairs, with lower countertops and cupboards, as well as a regular house.
“In all other cases we support people,” he said. “They either rent apartments, they may have their own place, or they may still live with their families.”
A lot of WIN’s time and effort is dedicated to risk management and risk reduction.
Morris emphasized how important risk management is by referring to an idea espoused by the Alliance for Nonprofit Management — “The least costly accident, in terms of time, money and morale, … is the one that does not occur.”
To that end, the organization has embraced technological advances to better monitor its clients to ensure they are safe.
For example, he said WIN provides a locking dosette, or daily pill dispenser, that only opens when the client is supposed to take his or her medication. When the time comes, an alarm goes off and won’t shut off until the medication is removed. If the medication is not taken within a specified time frame, emergency contacts are called to check in on the client.
Another system is New Brunswick-based TeleCare, a manned, home-monitoring system that provides services like stove monitoring, home temperature monitoring, flood detection and fall detection.
However, Morris acknowledged that no matter how much you work to eliminate risk, bad things are going to happen. And when they do, it’s important to have plans in place to follow in the event of an emergency.
For example, he said WIN runs regular fire drills, and provides its clients with tools like fire extinguishers, smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
WIN receives funding from the provincial government, but there is not one, single source of that funding. Instead, the funding comes from a different department depending on whether the client being served is a child, an adult with a physical disability, an adult with a brain injury or an adult with a developmental disability, among many possible avenues.
People can get involved with WIN through either visiting the office themselves, or being referred by such community services like doctors, Family and Community Support Services or Alberta Works, Morris said.
Once in the door, WIN staff will guide them along.
“We’ll walk them through the process,” he said. “We will help to connect them with a funder that will help to determine whether they qualify for services under that funder’s mandate, and if so, for what type and how much.”
Once approved, WIN will pay all the costs involved in working with the client, using the funder’s money.
For a client, their costs will be “the same costs they would have if they weren’t using our services,” Morris explained.
WIN history
WIN came into existence in 1988, and was initially an offshoot of Blue Heron Support Services in Barrhead.
Morris explained its genesis was in part because there were a lot of people who were covered for services as they went through school, but once they graduated there was nothing for them.
So, WIN was created to fill that void, and has been doing so in the Westlock community for 26 years this coming November.
Government Cut Backs and WIN
If you’ve been watching the news lately, you have probably heard that WIN could lose more than $400,000 in funding dollars as a result of the latest cutbacks the Alberta Government is planning. There is considerable confusion about the cut backs that are to be implemented July 1, 2013. What will this mean for WIN […]