Accessibility Standard for disabled customers "good start," but falls short
Posted Feb 26, 2010 By Desmond Devoy
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Tweet ThisEMC News - The newly-elected chair of the City of Ottawa's Accessibility Advisory Committee feels that the provincial government's new accessibility standard is a good start, but that there is still much to do.
"It is a step in the right direction," said Catherine Gardner, chair of the committee, during a telephone interview from her home last month. But, "they still have a long way to go."
The new provincial rules, which went into effect on New Year's Day, apply to all provincial ministries, municipalities, hospitals, schools and other public sector organizations that receive provincial money. They require that these bodies train staff to meet the needs of customers and their disabilities, talk to customers in a manner that takes their disability into account and allow service animals, such as seeing eye dogs, onto the premises.
As a volunteer with the City, Gardner took part in the City of Ottawa's training to bring staff up to date on the new legislation.
"All of us have to be certified, we have to take a small course," which was available through either a workshop in early December or via an online course. While she has long been an advocate for disabled people's rights, the workshop "was a very big eye opener for people who attended," with many people amazed by the "simple things that people don't think about."
Gardner's committee often looks over site plans for different developments in Ottawa, to see if they meet the needs of the disabled community. An example of how the new standards are not quite meeting these needs, for her, can be found in a provincially-funded clinic in Kanata, where "the counter is too high for people in wheelchairs." As a result, "all of your information is no longer confidential because the secretary has to yell over to you."
Another problem with the clinic that she pointed to was that some exam rooms were not big enough to accommodate patients getting out of their wheelchairs and while there is an accessible table, "you have to ask for it." Otherwise, if a person is not able to get onto an examining table under their own steam, important things like breast exams, pap tests or prostate exams cannot be carried out.
She also criticized proposed provincial legislation on the built environment "which does not include retrofitting."
Gardner pointed to the plans for the new Humane Society building on Hunt Club Road, which has both accessible and non-accessible washrooms. The plans for the accessible washrooms, unfortunately, include doors that swing into the toilets, making it more difficult for people to get out of their chair to use the facilities.
"People think that it is expensive," to accommodate the disabled, she said, but noted that there is a "ripple effect." When push buttons were introduced on OC Transpo buses, for example, people like mothers with young children, starting using them as well.
When asked if there was one facility, public or private in all of Ottawa that facilitated her condition well, she paused and stated that "we have bits and pieces."
She commended the swing-out table at the Pet Smart stores, which allow her to sign her credit card receipt.
It was ironic for Gardner that the new standards came into effect during New Year's Day. She took her granddaughter to the New Year's Eve festivities at Ben Franklin Place, 101 Centrepointe Drive in Nepean. "I wanted to take her onto the ice. But the ramp was broken," said Gardner sadly. "It was an eye opener for a lot of people on New Year's Eve," to see her having to watch her granddaughter enjoy the fireworks from afar.
One local business that has been singled out by the Ministry of Community and Social Services has been the Bridgehead coffee shop chain.
"We're trying to open up to be more inclusive in the workplace," said Kim Aylmer, a human resources official with Bridgehead, during a telephone interview on the afternoon of Tuesday, December 28. "It's been part of our practise since 1999," when the company was founded, Aylmer said. "We try to meet and exceed our requirements."
When it comes the new provincial requirements "we're ahead of the game. This isn't anything new."
These include modifying ramps, installing automatic doors and the like. If the company was looking to buy a new property to house one of its shops, if it did not have accessible washrooms, for example, "we wouldn't even consider a property like that."
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