ONWARD ~ and ~ UPWARD Judith Florian, R.N.

Featuring articles and discussion of diverse topics and issues, including:

 Disabilities, Home Health Care, Sexual Abuse of Children, and Advocacy.

Ok you don't have a Bachelor's Degree in Law or Pre-law, Criminal Justice, Sociology, Social Work, Psychology, English, Political Science, Public Administration, History, Philosophy, Statistics, Business Administration/Economics/Management, Computer Science or a related field!  Sigh.  Nope, you're just a person with a general education, maybe some college.  Who cares about your education when you are ill, disabled, or have a psychiatric diagnosis!!  You're in a situation that is a mess, where a problem needs solved, a situation that is (a) scary (b) uncertain (c) aggravating (d) overwhelming and often (e) has you either angry or in tears!  The other parties involved haven't heard you.  WHAT can YOU do?  And, how can YOU resolve the problem?

Let's go back to the skills required for advocate jobs.  Some skills that were listed boil down to:

The ability to communicate verbally and/or in writing in a tactful and diplomatic way while you remain calm, open-minded, non-judgmental, non-emotional, and with a sense of humor.  You should LISTEN to other people involved, be resourceful in how you approach problems, and persevere - work on the problem until it is resolved.  Tall order, huh, when you've got problems, you've got issues, you are ill, stressed, maxed out, burned out, afraid, angry, etc etc etc etc etc!!  

The good news is that the "duties" outlined for an advocate don't ALL apply to your self-advocacy (like having to report to a boss), but the duties list are still good to keep in mind and follow.   

You should do your best to keep written notes **from the beginning*** (or, start where you are).  

In ALL situations, you should know your rights, or find out your rights.  Consumers have rights, as do most groups (e.g. the disabled; the medically ill; the mentally ill etc) -- and every social agency or medical institution should give you a copy of their client / patient rights.  If you do not know your rights, ask, make some phone calls, do some research!   Keep a copy of every "rights" paper you are given.

To educate yourself on your rights within an agency or facility and educate yourself about the agency/facility's rules, regulations, and procedures as they apply to you, along with any services to which you are entitled.

To establish good relationships with the facility’s staff, as much as possible.

To learn where to take your complaints, and to understand and follow the complaint process (hard to do if you are already stressed out & just want fast resolution).

To maintain your own written records which you can refer to during each contact.

To make suggestions for improvement to the complaint process.

And, if able, to volunteer or assist in developing patient/client run councils or advocacy groups where none exist.

And, I might add: The courage and bravery to speak out on your own behalf !

So (gulp), you decide you MUST speak up, you WANT your problem solved, and you NEED to be heard.  Now what?

To be your own advocate, you must do two things before approaching the "other party".

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