Hailee and Zachary
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Hailee, mid-50s, is autistic and has psychosocial disability.
Her relative Zachary is her carer.
‘Hailee has a monotone voice,’ Zachary told the Royal Commission, ‘and is often assumed to be intellectually impaired despite being very capable.’
He says when Hailee is faced with situations of uncertainty such as dealing with bureaucracy, she experiences heightened levels of stress.
A few years ago, Hailee was regaining her confidence and socially interacting with friends following a ‘major episode’. She was living independently and ‘she was starting to drive again’.
However, a minor traffic incident became ‘an example of the damage that can be done when a prolonged process occurs’.
There was no damage to either Hailee’s vehicle or the other vehicle, yet the incident resulted in Hailee having to undertake a mandatory driving assessment.
Zachary says the other driver who reported Hailee may have assumed she was ‘not normal’ and unfit to drive a car simply ‘by her appearance and walk’.
The transport department contacted Hailee and advised she would need to get a medical assessment before being deemed ‘fit to drive’. Her doctor provided this assessment, but the department then took ‘a number of months’ to review her case and then insisted she take a practical driving test.
Zachary says the process has been distressing for both of them.
‘As her carer I have seen an increase in her anxiety which has set back her motivation to engage, cook for herself, energy level and general confidence.’
Zachary has been supervising Hailee’s driving and says she ‘drives safely and is able to respond quickly to poor behaviour of other road users’. He is confident she will pass the test.
Zachary says that when transport departments require a medical clearance they should provide ‘a rating of how urgent resolution of fitness to drive [is] to the person's wellbeing’. He says specialist staff should be employed to work with people with disability as a way to resolve issues quickly.
He hopes the necessary resources are provided for people with disability and mental illness, and that ‘the level of success is reviewed annually and publicly reported’.
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.