Our Disability Liaison Officers work with health care teams to provide safer, accessible, and more inclusive care during hospital admissions and outpatient clinic appointments, with the aim to minimise the negative impacts of illness and hospitalisation. The goal of the Disability Liaison Office is to support individuals who identify as having a disability and who are accessing, or require assistance to access Grampians Health.

International Day of People with Disabilities

Sunday 3 December is International Day of People with Disabilities.

Following are some tips on how you can be more inclusive of people with disabilities not only on International Day of People with Disabilities but throughout the year.

Use the Social Model of Disability to inform how we view inclusivity. The social model sees ‘disability’ is the result of the interaction between people living with impairments and an environment filled with physical, attitudinal, communication and social barriers.

Shifting language - where person-first language (people with disability) and identity-first language (disabled people) are both used. People with disability often have strong preferences for one term or the other, so it is best to follow the lead of the person or group you are talking about. It’s okay to ask. Some examples of how to shift language are:

Avoid saying: Joe suffers from, victim of, afflicted by, crippled by, incapacitated by.      

Try saying: Joe has a chronic health condition.

Avoid saying: Joe is confined to a wheelchair, wheelchair-bound, wheelchair person.

Try saying:  Joe uses a wheelchair or mobility device.

About our Disability Liaison Officers

Ben And Jemin

What to expect from our Disability Liaison Officers?

Depending on your location, our Disability Liaison Officers will provide you and your healthcare team with support via your preferred method of contact.

 

How can the Disability Liaison Officers assist you?

  • Identify and address barriers that may be preventing you from accessing Grampians Health.
  • Work with you to develop a ‘Disability Care Plan’, and assist with the implementation of adjustments and/or strategies for hospital admissions or outpatient appointments to provide a better experience.
  • Work alongside your hospital care team to assist them with understanding your social, environmental, emotional, communication, and sensory adjustments.
  • Act as a point of contact between families, health professionals, disability providers, support coordinators, and therapy teams for inpatient and outpatient services.
  • Work with your NDIS Support Coordinator to support discharge planning.
  • Attend outpatient appointments at Grampians Health with you to assist you with understanding the medical information given to you.
  • Provide generalised advice about the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

NDIS Services

Grampians Health Ballarat is the proud provider of a variety of services for NDIS participants. Please visit the individual service website for more information about the services provided:

Contact Details

For further information, please contact:

Disability Liaison Office: DLO@gh.org.au or 0428 843 695 (Ben) or 0448 086 239 (Jessica/Jemin)

Have something to tell us? We welcome all feedback from patients, family members or carers. Tell us more.