Synapse Wins Disability Action Week Award

Media Release - Tuesday, 7th of September, 2010

Synapse (a peak disability organisation) has received the “Reconciliation and Diversity” Award for their work in supporting and partnering with indigenous communities and building community capacity.

Jennifer Cullen Chief Executive Officer of Synapse accepted the award from the Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk MP Minister for Disability Services at the 2010 Disability Action Week Awards Presentation Ceremony held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The Synapse adopts a positive approach to working alongside people with a disability and involves them in developing initiatives and in the decision-making process. Among Synapse’s achievements is enhancing the lives of people with a disability for the longer term through collaboration and enhancing the capacity of communities, their families and Kin.

Synapse has also been actively involved in the Indigenous Mentoring Program (IMP) – a collaborative skills development initiative of the Department of Communities and the Department of Education and Training – whereby they worked with Indigenous disability and community service workers across Queensland.

Donna Engel, Synapse's Assessment & Planning Manager and Jennifer Cullen worked as mentors. Jennifer said of the mentoring program, “as a mentor I really valued the joint sharing of information and ideas, and celebrating the successes along the way, mentoring benefits everyone”.

Synapse was also involved with the Younger People in Residential Aged Care (YPIRAC) project where staff travelled widely throughout Queensland tracking down young people with disabilities in old aged care facilities in the hopes of relocating them to more suitable accommodation and services.

As part of the YPIRAC program, Donna Engel travelled to locations such as Mornington Island (the northern most land mass of 22 islands that form the Wellesley Islands), Cairns, Babinda, Atherton Tablelands, Mareeba, Mossman, Normanton, Yarrabah, Cooktown, Hope Vale, Mt Isa and Thursday Island.

When Synapse had identified that an indigenous person did not have either a next of kin or Guardian, Synapse then engaged the services of advocates to assist the person with a disability in the YPIRAC assessment process.

“All of our team work tirelessly in supporting people with disabilities, as far as the work we have undertaken in championing indigenous service delivery, Donna Engel is an inspiration to us all,” said Jennifer Cullen.

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About Synapse:

Synapse is dedicated to improving the quality of life of people living with and affected by acquired brain injury or for those people whose behaviour challenges our understanding.

For more information about BIAQ and brain injury go online to www.braininjury.org.au.