allanappel's blog

SIMULATIONS AND REALITY

By Allan Appel

Simulations of disability serve no purpose. In fact, they result in excessive pity and outright fear. Such demonstrations are counter-productive and leave a false impression about living with a disability.

CUSTOMER SERVICE BEYOND THE ADA

By Allan Appel

Marketing a business or service to the disability community sometimes involves going beyond the minimum requirements of The Americans with Disabilities Act. A hotel’s physical facility, for example, may meet ADA’s accessibility requirements, but poor customer service practices can still dampen or even ruin the stay of a guest with disabilities.

DISASTERS AND THE DISABLED

By Allan Appel

When planning for disasters, people with disabilities can do many things for themselves. In fact, with the exception of those with severe disabilities, we are essentially responsible for ourselves. And that should be enough motivation to remind us of how self-reliant we can be.

ACCESS BY THE NUMBERS

By Allan Appel

Have you ever wondered why there are either so few or perhaps so many handicapped spaces in any particular parking lot?

The answer lies in the numbers.

RETHINKING ADA COMPLIANCE NOTIFICATION

By Allan Appel

I’ve always thought ignorance of the law is no excuse for non-compliance. And I still believe that. But if the purpose of The Americans with Disabilities Act is to achieve access, then maybe we advocates need to re-think our strategy just a bit.

THE UNEXPECTED IMPACT OF DISABILITY

By Allan Appel

The impact on the family when one of its own is disabled can’t be overstated. Everyone is affected in one way or another. And as the life expectancy of that person increases, that impact becomes much more significant.

COMBATING HANDICAP PARKING PERMIT ABUSE

By Allan Appel

The illegal use of handicap parking permits has become more commonplace. Fraud and abuse have become so prevalent that many state and local jurisdictions have begun crackdowns that involve both the police and citizen action groups.

SUCCESS ON THE JOB WITH DYSLEXIA

By Allan Appel

Handling the work environment is challenging enough for anybody. Add Dyslexia to the mix and the workplace takes on a more formidable arena. For a dyslexic person, deciphering letters and numbers or poor short-term memory of sequences are daily hurdles to overcome.

PREVENTING FALLS IN THE HOME

By Allan Appel

A fall can be devastating. And the home is one of the more common places where falls occur.

Fortunately, there are a number of simple and inexpensive measures you can take to prevent most falls in the home. The National Institute on Aging has a number of suggestions to help keep you safe.

DOGS FOR THE DISABLED

By Allan Appel

The role of service dogs has become much more than as a guide for the visually impaired.

Some dogs are trained to assist those with hearing impairments, alerting them to door bells, telephones, baby cries and other signals.