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Joan Murphy
2/16/2017 8:10 PM
This post describes some practical examples of how Talking Mats has been used to help with decision making and supporting capacity decisions.
They are taken from stories which people have sent to the Talking Mats team and which have been been made into blogs on the Talking Mats website. Have a look at our website for more.
1. This blog is the transcript of a speech given by Greig McMurchy who is a young man who has cerebral palsy and uses a Voice Activated Communication System. He gave this speech at the launch of new Talking Mats Resources and in it he described how he has used Talking Mats to share his views, opinions and wishes, and how 'this system was helping me to make life Changing decisions, such as what I wanted to do with my life once I had finished my college course'.
2. Ruth Spilman is a Senior Speech and Language Therapist with Specialist services in education with the Cambian Group, Dorset, England. In this blog she discusses how she uses Talking Mats for Capacity Assessments with People with Additional Support Needs and Learning Disabilities
3. This blog was sent to us by Anna Volkmer who has had an excellent book published – Dealing with Capacity and Other Legal Issues with Adults with Acquired Neurological Conditions. In it she describes how AAC methods, including Talking Mats, can be used to support people in expressing their decisions.
4. This blog outlines how Talking Mats can support capacity to make decisions and includes some of the comments we received form participants at a Talking Mats seminar about the benefits of using Talking Mats to support decision making.
4. This blog was sent to us by Gillian Callander, Speech and Language Therapist in Glasgow, Scotland who has used the Talking Mats Eating and Drinking Resource with people with learning disability. She describes how it helps to ensure, that as far as possible, service users are able to input into the discussion about their eating and drinking and to make their opinions known. She has found that Talking Mats helped to provide evidence that service users do or do not understand the information being presented and can help decide outcome with regard to capacity for decision making.
Please share your stories of how you support decision making in a capacity context
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My PhD study shows how children and young people with a learning disability who are often assumed to not have capacity can be supported to make their views known about attending healthcare settings for clinical procedures. Rather than not understanding, children and young people clearly had an insight into why they attended hospitals and other settings for procedures and asked to be told more by their parents!
Greg Cigan - 2/23/2017
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The only way I know that he wants something is because he fusses or whines when he's unhappy or uncomfortable, and he smiles, makes noises or calms down when he's happy and comfortable. Does this statement describe your child?
She doesn't come to me to let me know what she wants, but it's easy for me to figure out, because she tries to do things for herself. She knows what she wants, and her behavior shows me what she wants. If she runs out of something to eat, she will just try to get more, rather than trying to get me to give her more.
Does this statement describe your child?
He knows how to get me to do something for him. He uses some of the kinds of behaviors below to communicate:
Does this statement describe your child?
Each question you will see is related to a certain message that your child might be able to express using a variety of behaviors. Read the question and decide whether your child is able to express the message described using any of the listed behaviors. If the answer is YES, then you must also decide whether your child has mastered the use of each behavior or whether it is still at an emerging stage. Check either the mastered or emerging box next to any behaviors your child uses to express the message. Use the following definitions to decide whether a behavior is mastered or emerging
– Does this independently most of the time when the opportunity arises
– Does this in a number of di erent contexts, and with di erent people
– Does this inconsistently
–
Only does this when prompted or encouraged to do so. Only does this in one or two contexts or with one person.
Each question you will see is related to a certain message that your child might be able to express using a variety of behaviors. Read the question and decide whether your child is able to express the message described using any of the listed behaviors. If the answer is YES, then you must also decide whether your child has mastered the use of each behavior or whether it is still at an emerging stage. Check either the mastered or emerging box next to any behaviors your child uses to express the message. Use the following definitions to decide whether a behavior is mastered or emerging
Many thanks, Greg. Your work is fantastic.
For others reading this here is a link to a blog that Greg sent us
Joan Murphy - 2/24/2017