Performers at Osaka's Big Stage - Deafblind International

Country NewsDeafblind Ontario Services have developeda formal partnership with Bob RumballHome for the Deaf where, between the twoorganizations, they have created a fantasticSnoezelen facility where deafblind peoplefrom the homes in the Simcoe County Regionare able to make use of the multi-sensoryenvironment. The Sense house I work alreadyhas a great Snoezelen facility, but I felt thatyou can’t have too much information aboutsensory equipment. The tactile seascapemural has given me some great ideas that Ithink one deafblind man would enjoy back inthe UK!Of great interest to me was learning thatsome of the deafblind individuals living inDeafBlind Ontario Services houses have “jobs”within their local community, such as puttingthe recycling out at the local Fire station,packing boxes at the pizza store or wipingdown tables at a nearby café. These activitiestake place with one-one support of theIntervenors, enabling the deafblind peopleto participate in their community, to improvetheir communication and interaction skillsand to build valued relationships with peopleoutside of the organisation.Probably the most interesting and possiblyone of the most valuable aspects of myvisit was learning about the “Calendar”communication systems that are usedthroughout DeafBlind Ontario Services.Calendar systems are used in conjunctionwith Adaptive Interactive Tactile SignLanguage (AITSL). This system is a collectionof concrete objects or pictures that symbolizean activity or routine which has proven tohelp develop and enhance the receptive andexpressive communication of many of thedeafblind people supported by DeafBlindOntario Services. These calendar systemsinclude: “Now” and “Finished” boxes orbaskets; “Morning”, “Afternoon” and“Evening” pigeon holes, and larger Calendarsystems which have information aboutseveral activities each day for a whole week.Staff reported that this system gives theindividuals tactile information about activitiesbeing offered, which enables the predictionof future events thus helping to buildmemories about their routines and activities.The people who are deafblind can use thissystem to make decisions and choices as towhat activity they wish to take part in.CalendarHaving seen first-hand the many varietiesof this Calendar system, all implementedto meet the needs and abilities of eachdeafblind individual; having the opportunityto talk to various staff about its benefitsand in particular experiencing the practicalapplication of such a potentially empoweringmethod of enhancing communication, hasleft me really inspired! I feel very excitedabout the possibility that this systemwill prove to be a useful addition to thecommunication methods already in use backat home. I am now planning to deliver aninitial feedback session to Sense staff. I willexplain my experiences with the calendarsystems used by the DeafBlind OntarioServices staff, with the aspiration that theinformation is then passed to as many Sensestaff as possible.Towards the end of the exchange I wasfortunate enough to attend the Spirit ofIntervenors Symposium ‘Carrying the Torchof Knowledge’, hosted by the DeafblindCoalition of Ontario. This is an associationof individuals and organizations advocatingfor access to appropriate Intervenor servicesfor all citizens who are deafblind livingin Ontario. This, the largest gathering ofIntervenors in the world, was held over3 days (February 24-27, 2010).and wasattended by 355 Intervenors from 13different organisations who all supportdeafblind people. There were presentationsabout each organisations work, workshopswhich informed and explored many keyissues, uplifting presentations from manyinspirational speakers and of course greatopportunities to network with others to shareideas and work practices.CanadacontinuedJan u a r y – Ju n e 2011 • DbI Review • 39