Author: abbierebeccamilenkovic

Disabled people aren’t invisible!

abbierebeccamilenkovic

My aim for this blog post is to raise awareness to a big issue that wheelchair users face; the feeling of being invisible.

After gathering primary research from observing my family members whilst out in their wheelchair, some of their comments about our trip out made me think deeply about the frustrations and inequalities that disabled people face in everyday life. The comments that I connected with the most is the feeling of being invisible to others around them. Disabled or not, we are all the same on the inside, we all have a beating heart, red blood, and organs. So why are disabled people being treated differently? Is it because they could be a wheelchair user or different to everyone else? Being treated differently isn’t a nice thing to be put through, and there are millions of people in the world that will have been treated differently for something or another, without an explanation, so why do people think it’s acceptable to treat disabled people differently?

I have done some online research and looked into whether other disabled people may feel, the same due to being disabled and I found some touching blog posts of individuals sharing their experiences with this issue. After reading posts shared by wheelchair users it made me think, we live in such a selfish and ignorant world. I understand that there are many people that maybe don’t understand disability or may feel uncomfortable being around someone who has a disability, but I wonder if these able-bodied people think about feelings and emotions of other people.

I am now going to share a series of articles and blog posts I have found, made by wheelchair users explaining their experiences of how they have felt invisible to the public.

When being in a wheelchair made me feel invisible (Brook.L (2017) 

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When people talk about me as if I’m not there because I have a disability (Hardy. M (2016)

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When I feel invisible in my wheelchair (Hugh-Jones. L (2016)

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Ethics in Design… what are they?

abbierebeccamilenkovic

This week we had a lecture on ethics, and how as designers we need to think when we are working as a team, for a client or just in everyday life.

What are ethics? – Ethic – A set of moral principles, especially ones relating to or affirming a specified group, field, or form of conduct. (Ethic definition – Oxford Dictionary (2018)

Why do we have ethics? – Ethics are in place to ensure that we approach a situation or question correctly, however, the word ethic can stretch over many different areas of interest such as researching, materials, people, product testing and so on… Being an ethical designer makes an impact not only in yourself but in the lives of the users.

In the lecture, we were set a task of completing fake ethics sheets given to us in order for us to understand what ethics are.

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This image is taken from part of ethics sheet given in the lecture. (Milenkovic.A. 2018)
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Image of group discussion over ethics sheets. (Milenkovic.A. 2018)

Being ethical is about being honest, objective, integral, open, respectful of property, confidential, a responsible publisher, a responsible mentor, respecting colleagues, socially responsible, non-discrimination, competent, legal, protecting human subject and animals. (“What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important?”, 2015)

 

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TEDTalks – Who has inspired me?

abbierebeccamilenkovic

Over the last few weeks, I have been inspired by designers from across the world through viewing TEDTalk videos. There are all kinds of designers speaking openly about their work and how (if apparent) they use their disability to excel their thoughts and ideas, to help to make the design world a more accessible place.

Sinéad Burke @ TEDNYC – ‘Why should design include everyone’ (March 2017)

This is a capturing speech from Sinéad Burke. Standing at 105 1/2 cm or 3ft 5″, and living with Achondroplasia; ‘A hereditary condition in which the growth of long bones by ossification of cartilage is retarded, resulting in very short limbs and sometimes a face which is small in relation to the skull. – Achondroplasia Definition. Oxford Dictionary (2018). However, she describes herself as a ‘little person’.                                                                                                                               Sinéad Burke describes her journey through an airport and her everyday encounters and limitations she faces as a ‘little person’. Before Burke went into describing her experience through the airport I thought to myself that actually, it isn’t a suitable or accessible place for somebody who is so small. She feels this ‘inhabits her independence’ because everything had to be done for her because her surroundings weren’t accessible to her. She tells us how using a public bathroom is an “excruciating experience”, and how something as simple as ordering and collecting coffee becomes a “dangerous experience”. (Burke. S (2017)

“Design greatly impacts upon people’s lives, all lives. Design is a way in which we can feel included in the world, but it is also a way in which we can uphold a person’s dignity and their human rights. Design can also inflict vulnerability on a group whose needs aren’t considered.” (Burke. S (2017)

“Who are we not designing for? How can we amplify their voices and their experiences?What is the next step? Design is an enormous privilege, but it is a bigger responsibility.” (Burke. S (2017)

Elise Roy @ TEDxMidAtlantic – ‘When we design for disability, we all benefit’ (September 2015)

“I believe that losing my hearing was one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever received,” (Roy. E (2015)

 

John Hockenberry @ TED2012 – ‘We are all designers’ (March 2012)

“…exactly 36 years ago this week, that’s right, I was in a poorly designed automobile that hit a poorly designed guardrail on a poorly designed road in Pennsylvania, and plummeted down a 200-foot embankment and killed two people in the car. But ever since then, the wheelchair has been a given in my life. My life, at the mercy of good design and bad design.” (Hockenberry. J (2012)

This TEDTalk taken by John Hockenberry is a moving piece, he describes his life before and after his accident which led him to be wheelchair bound and how a small discovery from his daughters made such a big impact on his daily life, – people were able to see past Hockenberry’s disability once he has his multicoloured lights installed to the front of his wheelchair.

 

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Why aren’t all public buildings ‘accessible’?

abbierebeccamilenkovic

So after weeks of researching into design and disability, it upsets me to find places that advertise that they’re disabled friendly but actually it’s when you look closely into detail… that’s when you notice the little things that stop it from being accessible.

It could be something as simple as lips on the bottom of door-ways, tables too close together; which restricts passages, door widths, restricting toilet sizes or even floor coverings. – It’s the little things that go unnoticed that make the biggest impacts.

From this, I ask myself… Why aren’t all new and upcoming commercial design put through thorough disabled accessibility standards?

Why aren’t these standards being properly met? – I have underlined the word properly because, after researching into disability and having family that are disabled, it occurred to me that actually with a little bit of consideration and tweaking of plans it can change an interior space drastically and allow users to properly use a space.

So for this blog post, I will be capturing buildings that aren’t accessible and could be further made accessible from a small change. Some of the images of buildings have wheelchair access at the rear of the building… why cant wheelchair users access it from the front like everybody else does?

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Observing the people closest to me…

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As part of my primary research, I used my family to help me gather more research on disability and design by taking them out to a public place to see how they would use the space, whether it be going out for a meal or simply shopping.

I am so passionate about designing for disability and when you have family members that struggle daily due to poorly designed buildings, everything becomes more apparent and obvious.

It is okay for a company or shop to say that their buildings are ‘accessible‘, but when I look closer at the finer details it becomes apparent that there are always unnecessary limitations.

For this exercise, I took my grandparents and partners parents out on separate occasions to different surroundings, to see how someone with a disability would interact and use an interior space, I also took observations of the space around them and how accessible the interior was. On top of this, I asked my subjects to give me a piece of advice that they could pass on to someone living with a disability.

 

Grandma S & Grandpa T

Grandma Sandra suffers from Rheumatoid Arthritis in her arms and legs which has caused mobility issues. Alongside this, she became a recent amputee of the lower left leg. Sandra now has a prosthetic leg with which she uses crutches and wheelchair until she is strong enough to walk on two legs independently.

On our trip out we went to a local carvery pub (which was yummy!). There we had to enter through the rear entrance as the front is stepped. The access doors were only just wide enough to squeeze a wheelchair through. I also noticed that there wasn’t a lowered area of the bar that my grandma could go to, to order, and when she did the bar staff couldn’t see her and spoke right over her.

Grandma is a huge football fan, so to help her own visibility when she goes to matches, grandma attached flashing lights to her wheels. Before this, she noticed that people would cut straight in front of her and not notice that she was in a chair, but once they were on she received positive comments. When I took her out she received comments like, “Wow they’re cool!” and “You won’t get lost with those on!” 

Advice –  “Keep your spirits up, there is a life after amputation.” ….. “Never be afraid to ask or receive help.” (Almond. S. 2018)

Grandma F

Due to her age, Grandma Flo’s mobility is slowly decreasing, making it harder for her to go out on her own. We bought her this Rollator and it was the best thing for her! Not only did it give her the confidence she needed to go out but the support too. When I took Grandma out to observe her, we went to the Trafford Centre – somewhere busy. At the restaurant the staff were very accommodating of grandmas rollator and cleared a space for her to put it next to us, however, we were right at the front of the entrance, but we didn’t mind.

Advice – “Get yourself a Rollator!” … “There might not be physical signs, but my disability is mobility.” … “Try not to feel pressured.” … “Don’t let it get you down.” … “Don’t be afraid to ask for or receive help.” … “You’ll have dull days, but you learn to work with them.” (Milenkovic. F. 2018)

Martin

Martin has Neuro Sarcoidosis which can affect any part the nervous system and in worse cases can leave you with a permanent disability and in an unfortunate case, this has happened to Martin.

Martin uses a motorised wheelchair as his means of transport, due to it being a motorised chair it is easier for him to get around because of the permanent state. When I took my partners parents out to observe, a few issues arose. Firstly we were only offered the table right next to the entrance – but it was way too cold to sit there, another issue was space inbetween tables – furniture had to be moved. But on the other hand, the restaurant was accommodating in other ways; there was a lowered bar area, the bar area floor was clear and had enough unobstructed space to turn, the carvery server was an acceptable height but could have been a touch lower.

Advice – “Listen to and take advice from specialists.” … “Don’t be afraid to ask for help.” … “Plan long-term.” … “Challenge as much as you can.” … “Look at motorbility.” … “Educating others on your disability.” (Rowley. M. 2018)