SOME of the most vulnerable and isolated members of the community have been abandoned by the system with funding supports cut five weeks short of the new financial year. Login or signup to continue reading The Hunter's deaf blind community have woken up to the devastating news that the Deaf Blind Connect run by a peer-led organisation, Community Disability Hunter (CDAH), has missed out on federal funding. Those people have fallen through the cracks, and no one's watching , says CDAH chief executive officer Andrew Vodic.
"It means we won't be able to do some of the most valuable work that we do and work that has undoubtedly become a necessity due to the closure of the large residential centres in NSW," Mr Vodic said. "People will now have little or no connection to the community." There are only two trained tactile interpreters in the Hunter, and they're not in group homes, he said.
"Which means that you spend 13 out of 14 days a fortnight sitting at home with no actual communication, people basically shoving medication at you and pushing you and moving you around without talking to you," Mr Vodic said. "And the only time you get any communication is when you come here." CDAH's Deaf Blind Connect program, which has run for four years, brought those people together with trained tactile interpreters, which involved hours of preparation coordinating with house managers, access workers, support staff, and individuals to bring them together.
Many travelled large distances to attend.
