DISCLOSURE

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DISCLOSURE

• Whats the Best Way to Do it

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What is Disclosure

• Simply put its about a person with a disability
  telling others work, place of study, community
  groups, friends about ones disability and the
  things that need to happen that help or will help
  the individual function effectively
• In some cases its about telling others about
  things that might happen that will affect
  attendance and productivity.
• In this sense Disclosure can
• be positive and negative.

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Factors Impacting on Disclosure

• Past experience of disability (positive/negative)
• Lack of knowledge of the need to disclose.
• Type of disability
• Relevance (is the disability really relevant to
  performance)
• Personal choice
• The feeling of being a burden
• Any other multitude of reasons

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Benefits of Disclosure

• Allows any adjustments that need to be made to be
  examined and implemented.
• Can make the person with the disability look
  assured and confident.
• Creates awareness of need.
• Allows communication and safety issues to be
  addressed.
• Can be a protection against discrimination (I
  didnt hide anything)
• Breaks the ice by bringing what can be a
  sensitive issue to the surface.
• Any other reasons that people can think of

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Value Added Approach

• Help mentality in the disability sector can
  lead to feeling like a burden
• Value added approach helps people with disability
  to recognise their value to society other than
  just as an inspiration
• A cynical way of looking at it is Without me,
  you wouldnt be here For example all of us
  here today owe, at least in part, the food on our
  table tonight to working in the disability
  sector.
• Mark Bagshaw calls Disability an untapped source
  for the economy to the tune of 6 billion.

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The Skills Approach to Disclosure

• There is a tendency to see Disclosure as
  admitting to weakness. As if the individual is
  needing assistance to do a job. The Skills
  approach to Disclosure promotes disclosure as
  talking about different ways or skills to do a
  job. For example
• Dont say I need help through interpreters to
  communicate. Say I communicate and others
  communicate with me through interpreters. I am
  skilled in the use of interpreters and I will
  train my colleagues in the use of interpreters
• Dont say Text to voice software helps me
  read.. say I am skilled in the use of text
  to voice software which I use to read
• The gist of the matter is to promote adjustments
  and needs as positive skills that have been
  developed so that the individual with a
  disability can complete the required tasks.

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The Assertive Approach

• Sometimes disclosing is not about completing
  tasks but basic access. Stating access needs in
  a positive way can be beneficial. For example
• To ensure my safety and the safety of others its
  important that
• I have some personal needs, these are ..
• These issues might simply be gaining access to a
  building. Or they can be more personal such as
  toileting or hygiene. An assertive, matter of
  fact approach to them brings the issues readily
  to the surface. This can be important
  particularly where the third party has little
  experience of disability.

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Where These Approaches fall Down

• When the disability is episodic
• When productivity and attendance are obviously
  compromised
• Where an individual has little experience of the
  workplace and has received little information
  about workplace needs and disclosure.
• When an individual is by nature, not assertive.
• Age of onset of the disability. A person who has
  recently acquired a disability often finds it
  harder to accept and talk about.
• Any other reasons people can suggest .

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PREPARING TO DISCLOSE

• Know what adjustments are required.
• Develop assertive and positive spiels to explain
  adjustments .. They are skills not help.
• Understand the benefits of disclosing
• Prepare school age students to disclose. Many
  schools are sensitive to discussing the students
  disability because they do not want to make the
  student feel different
• Understand the tasks required in a job know the
  adjustments that are required.
• Remember in many cases the employer may be
  experiencing disability for the first time. A
  positive person with a disability can help put
  the employer at ease.
• Some disabilities are more difficult to put in a
  positive light. In many cases there is no
  straight-forward answer preparation and
  planning help but may not be the only answer.