Saturday 3 December is International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD), a day that promotes the understanding of disability issues, and raises awareness and support for the dignity, rights and wellbeing of people with a disability. It’s the 31st time the day has been celebrated globally, with the day first being proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992.
The theme for this year’s IDPwD is ‘Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fuelling an accessible and equitable world’. As a part of the global discussion, assistive technologies will be put under the spotlight, highlighting the role that they can play in increasing the accessibility of employment, and how innovation can reduce inequalities in both the private and public sectors.
Over 200 events are being held around Australia to coincide with the day – you can find out about them all on the Australian IDPWD website.
Intopia Podcast Episode 2: Accessibility in Healthcare
As a part of IDPwD, Intopia is releasing the second episode of its two-episode podcast series that takes a detailed look at the accessibility and inclusiveness of healthcare (linking to the theme of World Usability Day – ‘Our Health’ – celebrated in the middle of November).
Episode 2 features Dinesh Palipana OAM, a practising doctor based in Queensland. In 2010, Dinesh was involved in a serious car accident that resulted in him becoming quadriplegic. Dinesh went on to complete his degree in medicine (becoming only the second person with quadriplegia to graduate medical school in Australia). He’s since gone on to write about his life in the acclaimed book Stronger, and was 2021’s Queensland Australian of the Year.
In this episode, Dinesh talks with our Intopia Connect team about the challenges faced when completing medical school, and how innovation in accessible technology has not only supported his career, but also the healthcare he provides his patients.
Check out the full episode of the podcast below:
[link to transcript]
You can also check out episode 1 of the podcast series, featuring accessibility practitioner Lauren Hayes.
The team involved with creating Intopia’s podcast series includes Jacinta Gregory, Charlii Parker, Tess Hutley, Fabian Lapham and Tess Herbert.
