Self

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Self Advocacyand People with Brain Injuries

• Daniel J. Keating, PhD
• Executive Director
• The Alliance for the Betterment if Citizens with
  Disabilities
• dan_at_abcdnj.org

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World Health Organization Interaction of
Concepts ICF 2001
Health Condition (disorder/disease)
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Self-Advocacy

• Important in rehabilitation and recovery
• Can affect physical health
• Can affect emotional health
• Can impact quality of life
• Empowers

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What is Self-Advocacy?

• Advocacy can mean many things, but in general,
  it refers to taking action. Advocacy simply
  involves speaking and acting on behalf of your
  self or others.
• Advocacy Tool Kit Skills and Strategies for
  Effective Self and Peer Advocacy Disability
  Rights Wisconsin, 2008, www.disabilityrightswi.org

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What is Self-Advocacy?

• Advocacy is a type of problem solving designed
  to protect personal, and legal rights, and to
  insure a diversified existence.
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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What is Self-Advocacy?

• There are several types of action that a person
  can take
• System advocacy taking actions to influence
  social, political, and economic systems to bring
  about change for groups of people
• Legal advocacy what lawyers do to establish or
  protect legal rights
• Legislative advocacy change laws, promote new
  laws
• Peer advocacy taking actions to represent the
  rights and interests of someone other than
  yourself
• Self-advocacy taking action to represent and
  advance your own interests
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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What is Self-Advocacy?

• Individual self-advocacy speaking or acting for
  oneself and deciding what is best for the
  individual and taking charge of ones life by
  standing up for oneself.
• Group self-advocacy individuals join together to
  advocate for a common cause Groups can become
  social outlets for people with disabilities
• Brandt, J. Creating a New Self-Advocacy
  Organization Imagine the Possibilities,
  Partnership for People with Disabilities,
  Virginia Commonwealth University.

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What is Self-Advocacy?

• People withdisabilities must be able to act as
  self-advocates, that is to exercise their rights
  of basic personhood and citizenship by speaking
  and standing up for themselves. This means that
  people must have a voice in decision-making in
  all areas of their daily life and in public
  policy decisions affecting them.
• Self-Advocacy, The Arc of the United States,
  px?piwww.thearc.org/page.asd2358

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Advocacy Skills

• Self advocacy skills can help you avoid or solve
  problems with family and loved ones, doctors and
  lawyers, employers, associates, and friends
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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Advocacy Skills

• Self-advocacy skills can help you obtain
  reasonable and necessary accommodations in both
  public and private settings i.e., education,
  housing, employment, transportation, and
  taxation.
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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Advocacy Skills

• Self-advocacy skills can help you identify,
  analyze, and make informed decisions concerning
  choices one must make. The regular exercise of
  self-advocacy skills can empower one to gain
  greater control over ones life.
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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Self-Advocacy Plan

• Effective advocacy of any kind requires building
  a solid strategy or plan and practicing skills to
  help you feel comfortable and confident in
  reaching your advocacy goals.
• Advocacy Training Manual Wisconsin Coalition for
  Advocacy, 1986

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Self-Advocacy Plan

• Break Down the problem
• Educate yourself
• Identify your rights
• Develop a solution (goal) and strategy to address
  your problem
• Advocacy Training Manual Wisconsin Coalition for
  Advocacy, 1986

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Self-Advocacy Skills

• Educate oneself about your condition
• Keep good records
• Problem solve
• Keep a positive attitude
• Be Persistent
• Thank those who help you
• Advocacy Skills Brain Injury Resource Center
  www.headinjury.com/advocacy.htm

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Advocacy Plan

• Create a Plan
• Statement of the problem
• What would you like to achieve?
• A statement of general purpose or intent

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Advocacy Plan

• What would you like to achieve?
• What are your goals?
• What is the ideal solution
• What are compromise solutions

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Advocacy Plan

• Information available
• What Information do you have?
• What information do you need?

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Advocacy Plan

• Arguments
• What are the arguments that are pro your
  position?
• What are the arguments that are con your position?

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Advocacy Plan

• Step by Step Plan
• Who will do what
• What will you do?
• What will other do?
• When will things be done by?
• Establish dates and deadlines

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Advocacy Plan

• What will you do next if you succeed?
• What will you do if you do not succeed?

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Conclusion

• Questions
• ???