Your Stories

Richard's Story

Richard approached VoiceAbility for support in making positive changes in his life. He had been in and out of prison and found it very difficult to manage his problems with alcohol.

Working with a VoiceAbility advocate, Richard was able to get the support he needed to participate in CPA meetings, access the right community services and set up a personal budget.

Four years on, Richard now feels in control of his life and is proud to be reducing his dependence on support services.

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Naseem's Story

When ward changes took place at St. Andrews Healthcare in Birmingham the needs and challenges of all patients needed to be reassessed.  Naseem has been living at St. Andrews for some time and felt secure there.  He liked the ethos and the staff understood his need for routine. They worked with him closely to make sure he was given the best care. 

But as Naseem has epilepsy as well as autism, the hospital staff felt that going up and down stairs to the smoking area all day would be too much of a risk. The Commissioners agreed that Naseem needed to be moved.

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Jerry's Story

Jerry let his feet do the talking for him.  After a stroke left him unable to communicate he tried to show the staff at a residential care home that he wanted to go home by leaving under his own steam.

Assessors decided that Jerry didn’t have capacity and a DoLS (Deprivation of Liberty) order was made.  This meant that when Jerry tried to leave the home, he was restrained by locks and by the staff. Without friends and family, Jerry was anxious, upset and prone to angry reactions when approached by members of staff.

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