Nicole Brimble waited nine years to hear her daughter Abbey say “mum”. She has only heard it once and it was enough to bring proud tears to her eyes. Abbey is one of thousands of disabled Australian children with conditions so rare they don’t yet have a name. She is a medical mystery and as … Continued
The Other Film Festival presents a unique program of films at UN HQ New York during the United Nations’ Sixth Session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities This July, the world’s leading disability film festival, Australia’s own THE OTHER FILM FESTIVAL, will present a specially-curated program … Continued
From today, a cutting-edge new app will enable people who are blind or vision impaired to enjoy live theatre by providing high-quality audio descriptions on their mobile devices, including smart phones and tablets. Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers Amanda Rishworth today launched the GoTheatrical! mobile app, developed by award-winning Australian company The Captioning Studio, … Continued
Plans to place a limit on the number of mobility scooters allowed into Commonwealth Games venues is outrageous and discriminatory, according to the lobby group for seniors. Media outlets have today reported that the Queensland Government is concerned about overcrowding at the Commonwealth Games and is considering implementing news laws which allow venue management to … Continued
Disability Services Commissioner will provide an independent complaints process to participants of the Barwon DisabilityCare Australia Launch from 1 July 2013. We are pleased that the current safeguards in Victoria will be maintained for participants of the Barwon DisabilityCare Australia (DCA) Launch. From 1 July 2013, the Disability Services Commissioner will provide an independent complaints … Continued
A Deaf mum who says her newborn daughter died because she was forced to co-sleep with her is suing the Department of Human Services. The heartbroken mother, who can’t be named for legal reasons, carries her baby’s ashes with her as a reminder of her “little angel”. Her baby was just seven weeks old when … Continued
To celebrate International Day for People with Disabilities, 3CR broadcast 12 hours of disability related programs. These are now available as podcast for download on the 3CR website.
When Stella Young was four years old, she broke her leg while on a family holiday in Adelaide. For Stella and her family, such an incident wasn’t uncommon. The disability advocate and editor of ABC’s Ramp Up was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, a congenital condition more commonly – and crudely – known as brittle bone … Continued
Ben Thompson spent his early 20s in a nursing home after an assault outside his home in Cranbourne left him with a brain injury, meaning he required constant care. His sister Hannah said the nursing home staff were ”fantastic” but it was hard for Ben to engage with the residents, most of whom were 60 … Continued
Children, disabled people and the mentally ill will be denied access to free legal advice on compensation matters under a range of cuts to Legal Aid NSW. The service is $200,000 in deficit and has been forced to find savings to meet an even tighter budget for the new financial year, but ruled out tightening … Continued
I recently made some widely reported comments about helping more disabled people – particularly disability support pensioners – into jobs. In response, I received two death threats and about 50 emails, phone calls and letters, many from people who wished me in fairly graphic terms – how do I say this politely? – to refrain … Continued
Jock Watson spent most of his 20s in a nursing home after a car accident left him with an acquired brain injury, meaning he needed constant care. While fellow residents tried to engage the young man in their bingo games and sing-a-longs, it was an isolating experience. ”He spent much of his time in his … Continued
It began with a mother’s plea and had many champions. Australia’s groundbreaking disability insurance scheme starts today.missions One day in 2006, Bruce Bonyhady went to visit a kindergarten in the Melbourne suburb of Endeavour Hills. Bonyhady, then chairman of Yooralla, was confronted by a woman demanding to know why she couldn’t get the support she … Continued
International negotiators meeting under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) adopted on June 27 a landmark new treaty that boosts access to books for the benefit of hundreds of millions of people who are blind, visually impaired and print-disabled. The treaty, approved after more than a week of intense debate among negotiators … Continued
The cost of new wheelchair-friendly taxi licences for outer Melbourne will increase by $5000 in law changes designed to appease rogue independent MP Geoff Shaw and some Coalition backbenchers. Legislation that passed State Parliament’s Lower House had a $17,000 licence price tag for a new conventional cab that services suburbs such as Frankston and Dandenong, … Continued