How can we create a more inclusive community for disabled people
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We are now in Disability History Month, an annual event focusing on equality and human rights and Monday 4 December was the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a day helping to promote understanding of disability issues and mobilise support for the dignity, rights and well–being of disabled people. (For a note on how we use language around disability read this blog post)
This month, Irish in Britain encourages each of us to act towards creating a fairer and more inclusive community where disabled people can have their say. You might choose to find out more about the social rights–based model of disability by reading an article on line, open a conversation with a friend or within your community about this way of thinking or discuss practical actions that you could take in your local community to promote the rights of persons with disabilities.
You are also welcome to contact Irish in Britain’s Cuimhne team on champions@irishinbritain.org to invite us to deliver some training, free of charge, to your community organisations on Understanding Memory Loss and/or Promoting the Rights of People Living With Dementia.
The word ‘dementia’ describes a set of symptoms that may include memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem–solving or language. These changes are often small to start with, but for someone with dementia they have become severe enough to affect daily life. A person with dementia may also experience changes in their mood or behaviour. Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease or a series of strokes. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, but not the only one
Cuimhne advocates seeing dementia through a social model of disability. This recognises that there are impairments (of memory and cognition) but that society disables people in the way that the lack of a wheelchair or a hearing loop “disables” people with mobility or hearing problems. Our aim is to break down the barriers which prevent people with dementia remaining independent and connected to their communities.
As the Mental Health Foundation explains,
“In the social model, people with dementia are centre stage, with their voices elevated, and are recognised as equal citizens with rights. They are the agents of change and their agency is valued and recognised. They are part of mainstream society and the range of barriers (social, attitudinal, physical and environmental) that oppress and exclude them are broken down. They are also part of a broader social movement for global change. A current manifestation of the social model in practice is the development of dementia–friendly communities … moving towards a social model requires massive change at the micro and macro (individual, institutional and systemic) levels.
“There are many stakeholders involved and their roles in this model change significantly and a shift in the power dynamics is necessary. Societal change is also needed in the form of a shift from the current ‘medicalised’ perspective on dementia to one that is based on the principles of solidarity and inclusion. The debate has really only just started.”
Thinking about dementia as a disability rather than illness may change the way people feel about it. Instead of pathologising people living with dementia we might instead promote people’s rights.
Kirsten Jacobs, Associate Director of dementia and wellness at Leading Age has written “If I think of dementia as an illness, for example, I might focus my attention on the medical aspects of the condition, and how its symptoms can be “fixed” with medication. I might see people with dementia as “patients” on the road to inevitable decline and diminishment.
“Thinking of dementia as a disability, on the other hand, reframes my thought processes completely. It makes me think about human rights and empowerment… and the international human rights treaty known as the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It helps me see that people living with dementia have hopes and dreams, skills and talents, and the desire to keep learning and growing. It stirs me to imagine modifications to our language, environment, and attitudes that could open doors for people with dementia, just as ramps and curb cuts opened doors for people with physical disabilities so many years ago.”