Ms Katie Lyon1, Ms Amber Smith
1Scope, Hawthorn, Australia
Biography:
Katie is a speech language pathologist with over 20 years of experience working with people with communication access requirements. She has held a variety of clinical, leadership and project management roles. Katie has a passion for capacity building projects that result in positive social impact for people with communication disability.
Abstract:
Best Care for People with Communication Disabilities aims to enhance communication between health professionals and patients during medical emergencies and ensure that the patient journey is communication accessible. One in five Australians has a disability but only 24% of adults with disability experience very good health, compared with 65% of adults without disability (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2019). People with disability need to engage more often with mainstream health services than those without disability with 26% visiting a hospital emergency department and 22% being hospitalised in every year. Poor communication leads to poor health outcomes for people with communication disabilities. Everyone should be able to make their own healthcare decisions and understand the information that is presented to them about their healthcare. Scope have worked with their valued partners (Ambulance Victoria; LaTrobe Regional Health; St Vincent’s Hospital; Two Way Street and South Australia Ambulance Service) to develop training and communication resources to enhance communication access across the patient journey in emergency health. A co-design approach to the development of resources and training has been implemented and people with disabilities have played a major role. This project, funded by the Department of Social Services through an Information, Linkages and Capacity Building grant, commenced in 2020 and has endured the unique challenges presented by the global pandemic. This presentation will outline the stages of the project; showcase the communication tools and training developed; and bring the personal stories of people with a disability and paramedics to life.