Newsroom

Stories: The Independence Program

For more information about The Independence Program run by Bloorview Kids Rehab, please contact:

Kim Jones-Galley
Tel: 416-425-6220, extension 3645
E-mail: kgalley at bloorview dot ca

To make a donation to the program, please contact Bloorview Kids Foundation.

Youth with disabilities try their wings

Making decisions, taking risks 'makes me feel like I have power,' participant says

For the first time in her life, Amanda Matheson is calling the shots.

What to eat, how to spend her money, when to go to bed - suddenly, these are all decisions the 21-year-old can make.

“It makes me feel like I have power,” says Amanda, who has cerebral palsy, uses a wheelchair and struggles to speak.

Amanda is one of 12 young adults with disabilities who are trying their wings at a university-based independence program run by Bloorview Kids Rehab and the Gage Transition to Independent Living.

For three weeks, Amanda and her peers will learn what it takes to live in residence at the University of Toronto. For some, it means booking attendants to assist them with things like washing, dressing and cooking. Caregivers at Amanda’s family home usually help her with these activities, but have been with her for so long that “they just do it,” she says, without seeking direction.

At The Independence Program (TIP), she plans her own days and schedules and directs attendants, something that’ll be crucial when she moves out on her own.

TIP - which is celebrating its 25th year - “allows youth with disabilities to experience independence in a realistic, community setting where they can practise what they’ve learned,” says Helen Healy, director of Bloorview's community outreach, recreation and education. Participants - who have physical disabilities and are generally going on to university, college or jobs - share accessible, five-bedroom suites at U of T’s Innis Residence. On their first day, they set goals related to achieving independence. For many, that means learning how to do laundry, cook, manage money and take public transportation.

“Parents are over-protective of a physically-challenged child, and don’t usually give them that kind of freedom,” explains Robin Simmons, 19, a participant. “When I applied for the program, I thought: ‘I want to do what my friends who don’t have disabilities are doing.’”

That may be key to promoting a healthy transition to adulthood for teens with disabilities. According to a recent study at Bloorview, teens with disabilities enter adulthood socially isolated and with limited access to education and employment. Part of the problem is that “they’re protected from taking risks and making everyday decisions which allow the teen who doesn’t have a disability to become independent,” Helen says.

“They may not have had the part-time job in school, or been given the responsibility to organize their own transportation.” The high school environment is a very supportive one, Helen adds, which doesn’t prepare them for the barriers they’ll face as an adult.

For Atasha Campbell, 18, washing her clothes for the first time at TIP produced an unexpected pleasure.
“At home, my Dad does everything for me,” explains Atasha, who is attending an office administration college program in the fall. “Doing my laundry here was actually kind of fun. I had to figure out how much soap to use, and I took the clothes out with a ‘reacher,’” - an assistive device.

Most program activities involve learning about a skill, and then going out and practising it. For example, after learning how to read maps, book Wheel Trans and use accessible subways, youth go into the community to find their way around. “We give them a route, let’s say to the grocery store, and they have to go out and buy groceries and come back,” says Kim Jones-Galley, TIP co-ordinator. A “City Survival” activity at the end of the first week requires each person to choose a place they want to go, get there and perform a task, and come back. Each participant is shadowed by a staff member.

“I never knew I could walk so far,” says Robin, who uses crutches, recalling her 20-minute walk to the Royal Ontario Museum. “Coming back I made a total wrong turn, but where my Mom might have gotten frustrated, the staff person who was following me didn’t. I like that opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them.”

Other activities include a workshop on sexuality, visits with adults with disabilities who are living independently in the community, and self-defence training. “I learned how to take down a guy that’s 6 foot 2,” Robin says. “It was so cool.”

But equally important, Robin says, was learning how to ask for help. “When we learned about how to use attendant services, I thought, ‘I don’t need this.’ But then I realized it could help to use an attendant for putting on my socks and shoes, or cooking, because I tire easily. That way I can keep my energy up.”

Program activities run from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and then participants are on their own - “to go out and do the town if they want,” Kim says.

Most participants meet their independence goals by the end of three weeks, but Kim says the greatest gain she sees in participants is a new confidence.

“I feel in control of my life,” Robin explains. “When I go home now my Mom can work the late shift she’s always wanted to, and I can make dinner and go out with my friends.” Robin plans to apply to the midwifery program at McMaster University, and to live in residence. “If it’s anything like this, I’ll love it.”

To be connected with expert sources, contact:

Louise Kinross, Manager, Communications
Tel: 416-424-3866
Pager: 416-589-8826
E-mail: media at bloorview dot ca

Back to Stories

• 
• 
• 

Select Text Size

• Adjust text size: Small Aa
• Adjust text size: Medium Aa
• Adjust text size: Large Aa