Bringing the personal experience to the professional- What happens when those impacted by hearing loss actually run the supports and services for others.

Keenan R1Johnson S1Scharf J1Not Yet Confirmed NWallach A1

1 Deaf Children Australia, Melbourne VIC, Australia

 

Since 2006 Deaf Children Australia has developed and continued to evolve its’, “Parent to Parent”, (peer support) and, “Lifestories, (positive Deaf / Hard of Hearing role models), Programs”, in an action response model. These services provide skilled and supervised peer based support to the families of children with a recent diagnosis of hearing loss, principally through infant newborn screening.

Embedding the principles effective health consumer engagement in service delivery, the programs are dedicated to providing support to children and families from the position of lived experience.

Evidencing the value of professionals with lived experience, these programs continue to provide significant benefit to families, encouraging their engagement with and informed decision making around the needs of their child. The programs are entirely staffed by those with lived experience.

Through a combination of empirical and qualitative data, and through short presentations by multiple speakers, DCA will present perspectives from all experiences of the programs:
• Data from a recent evaluation of the reported benefit of peer based, (those with lived experience in formal or professional roles), support from families;
• The experience of a peer support person;
• The experience of accessing the programs, which are based on lived experience;
• The recent experience and reflections of a Deaf/Hard of Hearing psychologist, specialising in the area of hearing loss, of the screening and surveillance processes.

These programs are a compliment to other clinical and professional services and support to children and families as they navigate the systems, services and decisions with which they are confronted. Given to date there is a paucity of those with lived experience in professional roles, despite the intent consciousness and intent of those professions, DCA will highlight the benefits to those sectors in its’ presentation.


Biographies:

Roz Keenan is CEO of Deaf Children Australia, specialist in special education, and parent of a profoundly Deaf young person.

Stacey Johnson is a Parent Supporter with Deaf Children Australia and has a daughter with hearing loss.

Julian Scharf is a Lifestories Mentor with Deaf Children Australia, an engineer and is deaf.

Ashleigh Wallach is a psychologist with Deaf Children Australia, is hard of hearing and has recently experienced screening and surveillance as a new parent. She has some interesting insights to share. Since 2006 Deaf Children Australia has developed and continued to evolve its’, “Parent to Parent”, (peer support) and, “Lifestories, (positive Deaf / Hard of Hearing role models), Programs”, in an action response model. These services provide skilled and supervised peer based support to the families of children with a recent diagnosis of hearing loss, principally through infant newborn screening.

Deaf Children Australia’s Parent to Parent and Lifestories Programs are entirely staffed by those with lived experience.

Embedding the principles effective health consumer engagement in service delivery, the programs are dedicated to providing support to children and families from the position of lived experience.

Evidencing the value of professionals with lived experience, these programs continue to provide significant benefit to families, encouraging their engagement with and informed decision making around the needs of their child. The programs are entirely staffed by those with lived experience.

Through a combination of empirical and qualitative data, and through short presentations by multiple speakers, DCA will present perspectives from all experiences of the programs:

  • Data from a recent evaluation of the reported benefit of peer based, (those with lived experience in formal or professional roles), support from families;
  • The experience of a peer support person;
  • The experience of accessing the programs, which are based on lived experience;
  • The recent experience and reflections of a Deaf/Hard of Hearing psychologist, specialising in the area of hearing loss, of the screening and surveillance processes.

These programs are a compliment to other clinical and professional services and support to children and families as they navigate the systems, services and decisions with which they are confronted. Given to date there is a paucity of those with lived experience in professional roles, despite the intent consciousness and intent of those professions, DCA will highlight the benefits to those sectors in its’ presentation.

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