In my work I belong to a professional association. They have started tracking disability information to try to demonstrate that they are not discriminating, as required by UK legislation.
The question begins with a statement which gives the legislative definition of disability and then gives a pick list of choices which you can select one.
Given my current minor symptoms it is clear that I choose "I do not have a disability".
But, I wanted to find out what they were using the data for and understand the process so asked a question. The interesting answer is that disability is a personal choice, and I hadn't really grasped that concept before.
It is entirely up to me to decide the point on the scale between now and when I end up (most likely) in a wheelchair when I would call myself "disabled".
It hadn't really occurred to me, assuming my symptoms progress a lot, that I could choose never to call myself disabled. In a lot of respects this is a very powerful and positive thought to carry forward.
I agree. Somebody shouldn’t be called as disabled until they declare it. But it is something that someone should not be embarrassed of, because it doesn’t make them less of a person. For as long as you can perform great at work, you can do as much as someone without a disability can do.
ReplyDeleteJason Hayes @ DECORM