Rights Here, Rights Now!

As we prepare for the 2022 Virginia General Assembly, we hope you all can learn about the Virginia State Budget budget in this repost episode, where we speak with dLCV staff member, Rhonda Thissen. It is a dense topic, but very important to learn how finances work within the state and how to best advocate for the services and funding that you need! If you enjoy this episode please subscribe and leave us a review! You can also follow us on Twitter @disAbilitylawVA and be sure to share this episode with your friends. Full transcript available at www.dlcv.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Rights-Here-Rights-Now-Episode-5-All-About-The-State-Budget-Transcription.txt

Ryann Mason, Ms. Wheelchair Virginia, is BACK today to talk all about Sex and Disability. Ryann is many things, one of them being a sex educator, and she is passionate about talking about sex and disability as it is rarely talked about. Ryann goes deep with us today on this topic.  You can find Ryann on Instagram at Chronically Ry. Full transcript available on www.dlcv.org. Find us on Facebook and on Twitter!

Today's episode is one of the greatest! We got to interview Ms. Wheelchair Virginia, Ryann Mason. Ryann shares all about the Ms. Wheelchair Virginia Pageant, her nursing career, and some advocacy tips with us. You do NOT want to miss this episode. Ryann will also be back next week for a special BONUS episode.  You can find Ryann on Instagram at Chronically Ry. Full transcript available on www.dlcv.org. Find us on Facebook and on Twitter! 

Welcome back listeners! Today we are talking about all the CHRIS (Computerized Human Rights Information System) database and what we do with it. The CHRIS database is information we receive every day from the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services regarding serious injuries or incidents that occur across the state involving people with disabilities. We receive this data into a database and then have a team of reviewers and volunteers read each report and assess any need for follow up. Sometimes we use this data to inform projects for upcoming years, monitoring goals, or we open investigations based on the reports. We hope this episodes gives you a glimpse into the important work that we do and how you can get involved! We always need volunteers to help us read these important reports. You can learn more about becoming a volunteer at www.dlcv.org/volunteer. As always, full transcriptions are available online at www.dlcv.org and you can follow us on Twitter and on Facebook. 

Today on the podcast, we have Pam Cato & Dr. Rick Mitchell, from DBVI, Department of Blind and Vision Impaired, talking about the services they provide, inviting us, and providing us, with a ton of information about, school, employment, Assistive Technology, [AT]. You can find out more about DBVI here. Or call them, their toll-free number is 800-622-2155. As always, full transcriptions of our podcast are available at www.dlcv.org. Follow us on Twitter and on Facebook. If you liked this podcast please feel free to subscribe and leave a review! 

Join us today for a delightful interview with Dale Batton, Deputy Director at DARS. DARS is the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services and they provide services to improve employment, quality of life, security, and independence of older adults and Virginians with disabilities and their families. Dale shares with us how to access DARS services, who is eligible, and how dLCV and DARS work together! You can find out more about DARS by visiting their website here.  As always, this episode has a full transcript available at www.dlcv.org. You can find us on Twitter and also on Facebook. If you like this podcast please subscribe and leave us a review! 

Today we interviewed former dLCV client and tremendous self-advocate, podcaster, and TBI survivor, Jay Crandell! Jay suffered a TBI on July 4, 2006 from a stray bullet while walking down the street. Since then he has been through much rehab to regain his independence. His parents are tremendous supports and have been there every step of the way. Jay has his own podcast, which you can listen to HERE. We hope you learn from Jay as he shares his wins and struggles and what he wishes the TBI system in Virginia has. If you want to learn more about the TBI resources in Virginia you can check out the Brain Injury Association of Virginia or season 2 episode 1 where we interviewed Anne McDonnell, the Executive Director of BIAV or episode 5 where we interview Chris Miller, the Director of the Brain Injury Services Coordination Unit at DARS!  As always, full transcription available on our website, www.dlcv.org. Find us on Facebook or on Twitter!

Join us as we welcome back fan favorite, Dana Traynham, as she shares all about Advance Directives. In previous episodes we have spoken about Guardianship issues and supported decision making. Dana shares alternatives to guardianship and how to obtain an advance directive in this episode. You can find many more videos and resources about this topic at www.dlcv.org/advideos and www.dlcv.org/supported-decision-making. You may also hear a little about Dana's new pet chickens at the end, so stay tuned! As always, full transcription available online at www.dlcv.org. Find us on Facebook and on Twitter.

Today we are joined by Karen Brimm, who wears many hats. Karen is the Community Services Manager of the Virginia Department for Deaf and Hard of Hearing and she is the acting Access and Functional Needs Officer for the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. Karen is working hard on advocating for information regarding COVID-19 and working hard on mitigating accessibility barriers. The pandemic has shown us many areas of inaccessibility in our daily lives and businesses and Karen has worked tirelessly over the past year to advocate for a more accessible and inclusive world. You can contact the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing here, and find out more about COVID-19 here! As always, full transcription is available online. Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter. 

Today we are discussing the new movie on Netflix, "I Care A Lot" regarding guardianship issues. If you haven't seen the movie yet, we recommend you watch it before listening to this episode, or it may be spoiled for you. Dana Traynham, dLCV Senior Staff Attorney joins us once again to discuss the movie, share alternatives to guardianship and gives us some Virginia specific examples.  There is a new Traumatic Brain Injury fact sheet on our website, you can find it HERE. There is also a new national hotline put together by the Administration for Community Living and the Centers for Disease Control with some disability councils. The hotline exists to promote vaccination efforts among people with disabilities across the country, with providing vaccine information, appointment scheduling, and connecting users with accessible transportation. The hotline can be reached at 888-677-1199 for the hotline or email [email protected].  Find us on Twitter at DisabilityLawVA or on Facebook. The transcript for this episode is available online.