Older disabled workers’ perceptions of volunteering

The activity of volunteering is readily available to, and undertaken by, able-bodied people in Australia and is recognized as a valuable social pursuit, particularly among citizens of retirement age. Despite the known benefits of volunteering, however, there are few reports of disabled people participating as volunteers and little is understood of their experiences or perceptions of volunteering. The aim of this study was to explore how older workers within supported employment settings perceived the opportunities for and barriers to volunteering. Fourteen people with long-standing impairments participated in this small qualitative study. Overall the participants were positive about volunteering, but noted they might require support to volunteer successfully. Drawing upon the participants' views, recommendations are made for developing training. Disabled workers facing retirement need to be supported to have opportunities for active participation in the community as volunteers if so desired.16 page(s

An Exploration of loneliness : communication and the social networks of older people with cerebral palsy

Background: There is a large body of research focusing on the experiences of loneliness of older adults, yet little is known about the loneliness experiences of older adults with lifelong disability. In this paper, the authors present some findings from a larger qualitative study on the loneliness experiences of older people with cerebral palsy. Method: Seven older adults with cerebral palsy participated in in-depth interviews. Analysis of the interviews identified overarching themes and recurrent topics in the data. These topics were coded and then grouped under the overarching themes. Results: Six themes were identified. All participants agreed that the themes of communication and social networks are most important when considering loneliness. In this paper, the participants' discussion of these two themes and their related topics are presented. Conclusions: The results demonstrate the need to provide support and training in communication to older people with cerebral palsy who experience communication difficulty, as well as to their communication partners. They also indicate the need for policy development to assist older adults with cerebral palsy to develop and maintain their social networks and form relationships that are rewarding and enriching.13 page(s

The Speech generating device (SGD) mentoring program : training adults who use an SGD to mentor

Mentoring in speech-generating device (SGD) use by adults who use SGDs offers the potential to improve new device learners’ linguistic competence. This paper forms part of a larger study of mentoring among people who use SGDs. This paper investigates the effects of training adults who use SGDs in interaction strategies to enable them to fulfil a mentoring role. Mentors were taught to use open-ended questions, expansions, and recast sentences. Three mentors, aged 23-, 31-, and 54-years-old; and three mentees, aged 13-, 14-, and 32-years-old, participated in this study. A nonconcurrent multiple-baseline-across-participants design was used to assess the outcomes. Following the interaction strategies training, an increase in the number of strategies used in mentoring sessions occurred across all three mentors. These results provide preliminary evidence of SGD mentor training success. The SGD mentors learned the strategies and used them in mentoring sessions.12 page(s

The Speech generating device (SGD) mentoring program : an evaluation

In this paper the perceptions of three mentors and three mentees who took part in a speech generating device (SGD) mentoring programme are presented. The aims of the study were to investigate the participants’ views on taking part in the mentoring programme and their satisfaction with the outcomes. Method: Information was gathered through semi-structured interviews with the six mentoring programme participants. Interview data were analysed for content themes. Results: Thematic analysis revealed six themes. Of these themes, five were identified in both the mentor and mentee’s data. These themes were: satisfaction with the SGD mentoring programme, mentee improvement in SGD use, the importance of a role model of SGD use, the SGD mentoring relationship as a helping relationship, and SGD mentoring contributes to mentor self-esteem. The remaining theme, mentors who use an SGD learn from the mentoring experience, was generated from the mentor’s data only. Conclusions: The results of this study provide initial evidence in support of mentoring among people who use an SGD. A total of five of the six participants perceived that people learning an SGD can benefit from SGD mentoring by experienced users of SGDs and agreed on a need for such mentoring programmes to improve SGD use.9 page(s

'We couldn't function without volunteers' : volunteering with a disability, the perspective of not-for-profit agencies

Volunteers play an important role in many organisations that deliver services for the public good. Many people within the community choose to volunteer and there is a rich literature on the reasons why people do so, as well as the benefits that accrue to individuals, organisations and the community. However, there are few reports of people with long-standing disability becoming volunteers. The aim of this study was to explore the views of volunteer coordinators in not-for-profit organisations concerning people with long-standing disability as volunteers. Seven coordinators participated in two focus groups. The participants identified opportunities for people with a disability to contribute as volunteers, but were also quick to point out significant barriers. The findings from this exploratory study suggest that if people with long-standing disability are to volunteer, consideration must be given to their individual requirements and overcoming negative community attitudes.6 page(s

Learning to use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) : is there a mentoring role for adults experienced in using AAC?

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Speech-language pathologists’ views on mentoring by people who use speech generating devices

Learning to use a speech generating device (SGD), also known as a voice output communication aid (VOCA), is a challenging experience for new device learners. These learners typically rely on training from speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and may not meet other users who are competent SGD communicators. The aim of this study was to explore SLPs' perceptions of the important components of a program where adults who use an SGD mentor new learners. A total of 17 SLPs experienced in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) participated in one of three focus groups. The focus group discussions were analysed for content themes and these were verified with participants. Thematic analysis revealed that experienced SLPs perceived that a mentoring program to improve SGD use might help people new to using SGDs. Participants were positive about SLPs collaborating with SGD mentors to support new learners. They suggested ways in which SLPs could provide assistance and guidelines for establishing a mentoring program. Potential benefits identified for new learners included opportunities to view successful use of an SGD in everyday settings and to receive support and guidance. Benefits for mentors included the satisfaction of helping new learners.12 page(s

The views of people who use speech generating devices on mentoring new learners

Purpose. This study explored the perspectives of adults who use a speech generating device (SGD) on the development of a mentoring programme to improve device use. Adults who are competent SGD communicators would mentor new learners. The aims were to investigate the participants’ views on peer mentoring to improve SGD use, the critical components of an SGD mentoring programme and the issues that might facilitate the likelihood of a programme’s success. Method. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 adults who use an SGD. These interviews were analysed for content themes. Results. Thematic analysis revealed that participants perceived that new SGD learners would benefit from mentoring by experienced SGD communicators. Participants considered benefits for new learners would include the opportunity to see successful use of an SGD and the opportunity to receive support and guidance from someone who has a shared experience of learning to use an SGD. Participants considered benefits for mentors to include the satisfaction gained from helping new learners. Participants suggested guidelines for establishing a programme and areas in which SGD mentors would require training. Conclusions. Participants indicated a need for a mentoring programme to improve SGD use. Such a programme might help address challenges that those new to learning an SGD encounter.12 page(s