The Ida Institute recently presented three short workshops at the 48th annual Convention of Indian Speech and Hearing Association in Mumbai, India. Ida Senior Audiologist Melanie Gregory and Learning Specialist Ena Nielsen presented on person-centered care, the Motivation Tools, and Living Well.
“There was a really nice mix of public and private sector,” says Ena Nielsen of the group, which consisted of audiologists, speech-langue pathologists, educators, and psychologists.
The workshops were also well-received by participants. “It was most interesting to see the actual applications of a holistic, humanistic and eclectic approach to rehabilitation counseling in action,” says Alka Sapre-Joshi, Head of the Department of Clinical Psychology at Ali Yaver Jung National Institute for Hearing Handicapped. “Particularly useful are the tools designed to assist clinician in translating technical information into easily understandable units and to pick up client needs, concerns and aspirations.”
For the Ida Institute, there is a real benefit in getting the perspectives of the professionals working in India. Ida tools are designed with the input of our global community, but we have a concentration of academics and professionals working in the systems of the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. While many challenges faced by people with hearing loss and professionals alike are the same the world around, it advantageous to learn about different professional realities and different concepts of living well with hearing loss.
“The program more than met my expectations providing opportunity for deep reflection, creative ideas and simple tools and tricks,” says Roopa Nagarajan, Vice-Principal of the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences and Course Chairperson of the Department of Speech Language & Hearing Sciences at Sri Ramachandra University. “Since my return, I have shared the ideas and tools with my students and colleagues. I hope to integrate these into our curriculum for audiology and use them in our clinics.”
Participants also related a great enthusiasm for the tools and willingness to implement them into their practices.
“The ideas shared in the workshop were very practical, not only for the hearing impaired but also to be utilized in day-to-day situations,” says Ex. Professor Geeta Gore. “I was specifically impressed with the concepts of the motivation tools, the line, box and circle and their utility in handling patients effectively. One needs to use the tools to become efficient. I wish to use it in my day-to-day activity.”
The Ida Institute wishes to thank again Ida Fellow Dr. Kalyani Mandke for facilitating Ida’s visit. If you were at the workshop and want to continue the discussion, or would just like to learn more, visit the thread about ISHACON in our Forum.