Genesis
House has an advocate for clients who have disabilities. The advocate
provides peer support and assistance in:
- Obtaining
accessible housing
- Applying
for benefits
- Providing
information on legal rights as persons with disabilities
- Referral
to community agencies
- Assuring
community services are provided in an appropriate way
- Specialized
safety planning
The
disability advocate provides education to service providers and
women with disabilities on the issue of domestic violence/abuse
in the lives of women with disabilities. Some of the topics presented
include the ADA, unique forms of abuse, barriers to independence,
enhancing service provision and the prevalence of abuse among
women with disabilities. Continuing education units are offered
for service providers in conjunction with this training.
The
award winning AVERT (Abuse & Violence Education & Recognition
Training) project trains women with mild and moderate mental retardation
to recognize and respond to abuse (including domestic violence
and sexual assault). A nine-week curriculum, the Being Safe class,
has been developed with one two-hour class per week. The curriculum
includes a detailed teacher’s guide, a participant workbook
with unique graphics and a video designed for use with the class.
Some of the topics covered in this class are types of abuse, personal
boundaries and responding to abuse. This class was developed and
is administered in collaboration with the Lorain County Board
of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. Technical
support provided by the Lorain County Rape Crisis Services of
the Nord Center.
“Persons
with injuries from intimate violence may not be aware of the signs
of TBI [traumatic brain injury], putting them at risk for subsequent
injury” (Car, Mary. Increasing Awareness about Possible
Neurological Alterations in Brain Status Secondary to Intimate
Violence. Brain Injury Association of America. 2002). Genesis
House has developed an easy to use and effective tool to screen
shelter clients for suspected head injuries. In addition the Disability
Advocate, along with psychologists, provides workshops to service
providers on the issue of brain injury and domestic violence.
Some topics include how to identify clients with suspected head
injuries, the effects (physical, cognitive and behavioral) of
head injuries and how to provide enhanced services to victims
with suspected or actual head injuries. Continuing education units
are offered.
If you have questions on disability advocacy at Genesis House,
contact the Disability Advocate, Peg Calvey, at the address and
phone number provided on the home page or by email at calvey@adelphia.net
