March 10, 2006

MGH Disabilities Awareness Day: Focus on resources

The MGH Council on Disabilities Awareness (CDA) hosted the MGH's first-ever Disabilities Awareness Day Feb. 28 to showcase the hospital's resources for patients, families, visitors and employees living with disabilities. In the Main Corridor, table displays provided information about the hospital's many services available for people with disabilities — including a full-time American sign language interpreter and a new accessibility web portal at www2.massgeneral.org/accessibility.html. Representatives from the MGH's Volunteer Services Ambassador program were on hand to discuss their training in how to be "sighted guides," to assist blind or visually impaired individuals. The event also marked the grand opening of the MGH Disabilities Access Center, located in the Blum Patient and Family Learning Center.

Above, members of the CDA

"This day proved to be a significant step in raising awareness and understanding of physical and hidden disabilities," says Carmen Vega-Barachowitz, president of the CDA and director of the MGH Department of Speech-Language and Swallowing Disorders. "The CDA continually strives to ensure a welcoming environment at the hospital for individuals with disabilities."