News and Notes 469 July 7

birgitta.chaiken - Wed, 07/07/2021 - 12:18

In observance of the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), NARIC presents resources from a few ADA National Network Regional Centers to help readers learn the basics of this law; This Just In... features a study examining the extent to which resilience is associated with well-being outcomes following TBI; this week's Research in Focus challenges the notion that people aging with spinal cord injury experience decline in all areas of life; the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Employment of People Who are Blind or Have Low Vision releases the 4to24 App, designed to help parents of youth with blindness or low vision support their child's transition from school through college and into the workplace; researcher from the North Texas Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Model System Center receives the 2021 Joshua B. Cantor Scholar Award from the Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine; research from the Community Living Policy Center is featured in Advancing access to independent living, an article in the Heller School Magazine about the impact of COVID-19 on access to Home- and Community-Based Services; the Pacific ADA Regional Center hosts webinar, How Personal Assistant Services Promote the Self-Determination of People with Disabilities Recovering from Disaster; the Mid-Atlantic ADA Regional Center hosts webinar, Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice and Disability: Away from Noway - Disability and Juvenile Justice; the Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center (MSKTC) seeks family member caregivers of individuals with TBI to provide feedback on a new factsheet, Stress Management Strategies for Caregivers; ADA.gov, maintained by the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, seeks visitors to provide feedback on an in-progress version of an improved website regarding its design and usability.

Date sent: 
2021-07-07
NARIC news: 

Over this past weekend, we celebrated Independence Day. But did you know that this July also marks the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? According to the NIDILRR-funded ADA National Network, the ADA is a civil rights law that "prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in all areas of public life", including transportation, education, employment, and all public and private spaces open to the general public. The ADA gives civil rights protections to people with disabilities, and guarantees equal opportunity in employment, public accommodations, telecommunications, services, and more. The ADA National Network Regional Centers are available to help people, agencies, and organizations understand their rights and responsibilities under the ADA. To get you started, we gathered a few resources from these centers to help you learn the basics of this important law in our Spotlight blog.

This Just In: 
Resilience and well-being after traumatic brain injury. Disability and Rehabilitation, Volume 42(14), Pgs. 2049-2055. NARIC Accession Number: J86164.
New to the NARIC collection, this NIDILRR-funded study examined the extent to which resilience is associated with well-being outcomes after traumatic brain injury (TBI), and whether those relationships are independent of global personality traits, such as affectivity. In the study of 67 adults with complicated-mild to severe TBI, objective physical health and disability showed modest relation to resilience, indicating that adverse health conditions and disability decreased with increasing resilience. Measures of subjective well-being showed modest-to-strong positive relation to resilience. The experience of brain injury does not diminish the positive influence resilience may have on long-term well-being. Resilience may function as a buffer to trauma even in the challenging context of cognitive insult. Access the full abstract and ordering information in REHABDATA.
 
Research in Focus: 
Long-Term Survivorship May Reduce Psychosocial Challenges for Adults Aging with Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury
This week's Research In Focus challenges the notion that people aging with spinal cord injury experience decline in all areas of life.
 
Resource Highlight: 
4to24 App
The NIDILRR-funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Employment of People Who are Blind or Have Low Vision (90RTEM0007) released the 4to24 App. The app is designed to help parents of youth with blindness or low vision support their child's transition from school through college and into the workforce. It can be used by parents of youth with blindness or low vision from 4 to 24 years old, and by youth with visual impairments from 16 to 24. The app is personalized based on vocational or educational goals and experience or skill levels. It sends age-appropriate information about various topics and suggests activities to build skills around travel, technology, social situations, and independent living. The app is available for iPhone and on the web. An Android version is in development. A version for Deaf-Blind youth will be released later this year.
 
News items: 
NIDILRR Researcher Receives Cantor Award
Shannon Juengst, PhD, from the NIDILRR-funded North Texas Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Model System Center (90RTEM0007), received the 2021 Joshua B. Cantor Scholar Award from the Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. The award is given in recognition of outstanding research that is judged to be a significant contribution to the field of brain injury rehabilitation and embodies Dr. Cantor's passion for developing and evaluating interventions that would give solace, meaning, and hope to individuals with TBI. Dr. Juengst’s research focuses on behavioral and emotional outcomes of traumatic brain injury, investigating biopsychosocial relationships, innovative telehealth methods, and evidence-based interventions.
 
Independent Living Policy Research Highlighted in Heller Magazine
Research from the NIDILRR-funded Community Living Policy Center (90DPTB0013) is featured in an article, Advancing access to independent living, in the Heller School Magazine. Principal Investigator Joseph Caldwell, PhD, and other project staff were interviewed about the impact of COVID-19 on access to Home- and Community-Based Services, and how the center's research in this area is shaping policy and advocacy efforts across the country.
 
Grantee event: 
Webinar: How Personal Assistance Services Promote the Self-Determination of People with Disabilities Recovering from Disaster TOMORROW
The NIDILRR-funded Pacific ADA Regional Center (90DP0081) will host a webinar, How Personal Assistant Services Promote the Self-Determination of People with Disabilities Recovering from Disaster, July 8th, 2:30-4 pm ET. Presenters will discuss the Personal Assistance Services Addendum to the Mass Care/Emergency Assistance Pandemic Planning Considerations which was released in January 2021. This addendum increases collaboration, planning, and knowledge surrounding the importance of establishing continuity of services for people with disabilities, prior to a disaster. Without proper planning for, or providing, personal assistance services at the onset of a disaster sheltering mission, the health and safety of disaster survivors may be at risk. Registration is free and required.
 
Webinar: Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice and Disability: Away from Noway - Disability and Juvenile Justice
The NIDILRR-funded Mid-Atlantic ADA Regional Center (990DP0089) will host a webinar, Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice and Disability: Away from Noway - Disability and Juvenile Justice, July 13th, 2-3:30 pm ET. Hasan Davis will discuss the power of data to tell the story of how education reinvestment can close the school-to-prison pipeline, and will share his own journey navigating the worlds of education, justice, and disability to go from juvenile detention to earning a law degree. Registration is free and required.
 
Participate: 
MSKTC Recruiting Family Members of People with TBI for Consumer Factsheet Testing
The NIDILRR-funded Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center (MSKTC) (90DP0082) is recruiting family members who are caregivers of individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI), including veterans with TBI, to provide feedback on a new factsheet, Stress Management Strategies for Caregivers. Interviews will last approximately 60 minutes. Individuals must be at least 18 years old to participate. Participants will receive $25 for their time. To register, call 202/403-5600 or email msktc@air.org.
 
Elsewhere in the Community: 
ADA.gov Invites Feedback on New Website
ADA.gov, maintained by the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, has invited visitors to explore and provide feedback on an in-progress version of an improved website, with the goal of making the site more user friendly. The beta site currently includes an introduction to the ADA and an article on service animals, and will add a topic article on parking soon. Visitors are invited to provide feedback on the site's design and usability through a brief form.
 
Archive link: 
http://www.icontact-archive.com/archive?c=654309&f=1190&s=26993&m=923599&t=635cba0a9267f719dd304fcd1ae764b160681b0bc4432192fe4b80b0dffecb7c