A wonderful resource in Edmonton has existed for over 50 years and is a pillar to the community of people with disabilities all over Alberta. When people with disabilities, service providers, or employers need a referral or a resource, Teresa Makarewich from Voices of Albertans with Disabilities will receive a call or a walk in. She is quick to help and has a plethora of knowledge from having worked at the organization for the last 7 years. VAD has an internal resource list that they use when needed, and are always looking to add more names and organizations to the database.
“Voices of Albertans with Disabilities actively promotes full participation in society alongside equity and accessibility for all regardless of abilities and barriers. We work with individuals to provide resources and supports for those needing help in forms or applications. We do in person appointments in Edmonton and phone appointments across Alberta and we educate schools and businesses about disability awareness.”
In a nutshell, this is what VAD has been offering over the past few decades. They receive inquiries about employment, housing (Civida), income support, Edmonton leisure passes, tax support for low income individuals, old age security forms, referrals for registered disability savings plans – and the list does not end there. When Makarewich fills out an AISH application with a client, she lets them know about employment supports in their area. She has conversations with clients about employment on a daily basis. Makarewich also used to complete legal appeals, but she now works with the Edmonton Community Legal Centre to cover the capacity and deliver higher success rates. She is often still the initial contact for a client before sending them to ECLC.
All of VAD services are free for people with disabilities from ages 18-64, including those transitioning from adulthood at 17 and 6 months. If somebody calls and Makarewich does not have the resource, she will still attempt to refer them to the right person. She notes that there are so many resources and support services across the province, making it a sizeable role to update their internal database on a regular basis.
As Makarewich has been able to connect with employers, service provider agencies, disability advocates, job seekers with disabilities and health care staff, she was able to provide a list of gaps and potential solutions. Listed below are a few examples.
- When a person is applying for AISH , they need to note on their application that they have attempted to look for employment. The AISH forms can be tedious and need letters of support. VAD is closely connected to resources in Edmonton, but have noticed that Employabilities is the only service provider agency who will offer written letters to people with disabilities to outline that they do not qualify for certain programs.
- AISH, CPPD (Canada pension plan disability) funding, and Income Support are 3 resources that require a person’s SIN to complete an application. If services were able to transition information on a client to each other, this would require less capacity from a person filling out multiple applications, and less time needed from the service to input information. Makarewich explains that AISH and CPDD funding cost-share AISH and CPPD are a cost share between the province and the federal government. Income Support already pays into AISH – implying that these 3 services could be easily linked as they are linked in some ways already. There is no option to transfer from another province or between programs even though the benefit programs all use the same general information with different eligibility.
- As mentioned above, filling out an AISH application can take time. It can also cost money – with physicians in Edmonton charging up to $500 per application. This has created barriers for a person already facing high barriers to employment and income. Income support may pay for an AISH application fee for doctors to fill out AISH medical, with approval ahead of time, but will only cover $85 per application. Some doctors and physicians tend to favour filling out applications for persons with physical disabilities, feeding into the stigma that invisible disabilities are not as justifiable.
- VAD has been collecting resources in Alberta for persons with disabilities in an internal database. This database is not official and takes time and research to be properly updated every year. There have been a handful of employment support providers who have attempted to create a centralized database for resources in Alberta, but the funding for these projects has fallen through the cracks. This calls for the need of an organization external to VAD to take on the role of building a database for Alberta – especially one that can be used for longer than a 3 year funding cycle.
- Although VAD finds itself in an accessible location in downtown Edmonton, Makarewich has noticed over the last 7 years that calls have tripled and they have less employees to manage the workload. Many of the grants they had received in the past have been reduced, or have dissolved completely. Pre Covid-19, their team used to sell candles door to door as a fundraising project. Although funding structures are negatively affecting the resource center, Makarewich notes that they have had a very consistent volunteer base through in person events and their board.
- The Government of Alberta team that works with AISH does not help individuals with application forms, but they do send the ones who inquire down the VAD pipeline. VAD does not receive compensation.
- Income Support applications will be completed in an accessible manner when VAD can create an online structure for their clients.
- There has been a lack of family physicians across Alberta which affects referrals that a person with a disability may need for their own health, employment, or funding requests.
- There is a current 2 year wait list for housing requests through Cevida.
When asked about the number of callers across Alberta and in person visits in Edmonton, Makarewich consults her breakdown of April – June as an example. The month of April alone had 46 in person visits and 179 phone calls. May had 26 visits and 147 phone calls, with June at 39 in person visits and 109 phone calls. Calls have tripled since 2018 due to the effects of Covid-19 and the need for virtual resources. Luckily, there are virtual accessibility options to accompany an appointment happening online, such as an ASL interpreter being able to join a Zoom video meeting, or closed captioning on screen. In the entire year of 2018, VAD had 318 in person visits in comparison to 858 in person visits in 2013. Appointments made by phone calls have tripled as well. The recent move to downtown Edmonton has informed the increase for person visits over the last few months. Alongside tracking call numbers and client visits, VAD also tracks the population identities that use the service to support government reports and grant funding.
Although numbers are high, VAD operates on a one time basis with most clients. There are few open files, but they are always willing to aid a client on a longer term basis. The one time basis clients do help with managing capacity, but the organization still hopes for more employees and funding in the future. VAD also does not require a medical diagnosis but trusts a self disclosure, opening the services to a wider audience.
Voices of Albertans with Disabilities is currently run by 3 employees – a small but mighty team. Although the team was larger a few years ago, funding structures and changes within the province have affected the stability of the organization. The most employees that the organization has had is 8 employees. They are hoping to bring on a case manager and offer a kiosk area in the Edmonton office for individuals to access a computer for job supports, such as resume building and job application. These kiosk stations will have sit-stand desks for accessibility. Makarewich hopes that they can set up the kiosks for full use by January 2025.
Author : Mariebelle Sawma
