Address details


Down Syndrome NSW
Level 6/410 Church St, North Parramatta
9am-5pm Monday - Thursday
T: 9841 444


Thursday 5 September 2013

Service Support and Success: men's health issue; vacations issue

The latest two issues of the excellent (and free!) online newsletter for support workers, from Canada, Service, Support and Success, edited by Dave Hingsburger and Angie Nethercott, both address matters important to people with disabilities, as always.



Willie Wellness: What You Need To Know In Order To Provide Effective Care, Down There, For Men With Disabilities
Dave Hingsburger, Service, Support and Success, Vol 2, Issue 9
It’s not uncommon for direct support professionals to be providing support for people twice their age and people of opposite gender. Questions from a 50 year old woman to a 20 year old man, or the reverse, as was the case with the woman who came into my office, can cause embarrassment and a lack of practical knowledge. This article is one that begins to discuss providing men with support specific to their needs as men. The subject of men’s health is a huge one, so this article is just a start. Follow up articles will deal with other health issues and with more “how to’s” for teaching. Consider this just a fact sheet about men’s private parts and information that you may need to provide information ...

Inclusive, Exclusive Vacations: Planning Vacations for People with Significant NeedsAngie Nethercott  and Dave Hingsburger, Service, Support and Success, Vol 2, Issue 8
... 'There was a man I worked with more than ten years ago now. He always wanted to go on a holiday, but never did while I was there. I always said that he shouldn’t go on a vacation because he had bad behaviours and that he would not be able to cope with change.

All of us staff agreed and we said that it was for his own good that he stay at home. In my heart, I knew that the reason we said this was because it would of made a lot more work for us staff. Every summer he was really sad because all of his friends got to go on holidays, but he stayed home. After I left, a bunch of other staff left too. The new staff took him on lots of vacations. I think you should write about how even if it’s a lot of work, people should get to have a holiday. What I did was wrong and I’m sorry'...

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