Sexual Health Educators

Speak Up brought together sexual health educators and adults who use AAC in order to identify current service gaps and needs for people who use AAC in getting information and services related to healthy sexuality and safeguarding.

Focus Group Members
Service Needs
Guidelines
Resources for Sexual Health Educators:

• Sexual Health Issues for AAC Users
• Sample Educational Topics for Training Sexual Health Educators who Support People who Use AAC in the Areas of Sexuality and Disability, Communication and Safeguarding
• Guidelines for Communicating with a Person who Uses AAC
• How to Use an AAC Interpreter
• Promoting Healthy Sexuality and Safeguarding in Youth who Use AAC – Guidelines for Parents, Teachers and Service Providers
• Tips for Working with Adults who Use AAC
• Making Services Accessible for People who Use AAC
• Speak Up Communication Displays
• How to Use Speak Up Communication Displays
• Speak Up Loan Kits
• Personal Stories of Adults who Use AAC

Focus Group Members   [Top]

Service Needs   [Top]

The focus group identified the following service gaps and challenges:

1. Sexual health educators may lack sexual health information that is relevant to people with disabilities and specifically to people who use AAC.


2. There is a lack of sexual health education and services for adults who use AAC.


3. Most existing sexual health services are not accessible for people who use AAC.


4. Traditional methods of distributing sexual health information such as internet and phone services, text based pamphlets and books are often not accessible to people who use AAC.


5. Students who use AAC may not be provided with sexual health information in the school system.


6. AAC users typically do not have access to the vocabulary and the support they require in learning to communicate about sexuality.

Guidelines for Sexual Health Educators Working with People who use AAC   [Top]

The focus group identified the following recommendations:

1. Sexual health educators may require information and training on sexual health issues for youth and adults who have disabilities.


2. Sexual health educators may need to know the sexual health needs and abuse risks specific to the AAC community.


3. Sexual health educators may need training and / or support in communicating with people who uses AAC; guidelines on when and how to use an AAC interpreter ; when and how to access an AAC consultant / Speech Language Pathologist.


4. Accessible, sexual health services are required to accommodate a broad mandate that provides services to AAC users regardless of age and gender.


5. Sexual health educators could work in collaboration with people who have disabilities, and communication service providers in order to provide a range of service formats to meet the needs of adults who use AAC. This includes group and individual supports in a range of settings – schools, day programs, drop-in centres, etc.


6. Sexual health information could be accessible via alternate formats to people who use AAC.


7. Sexual health educators could ensure sexual health education reaches youth with disabilities in both segregated and integrated classrooms. They could work closely with the AAC user’s team (family, teachers and communication clinicians) in order to ensure effective teaching and communication strategies.


8. Sexual health educators could ensure that information about disability is included in mainstream sexual health classrooms for non-disabled students.


9. Sexual health educators could liaise with client supports / communication team about introducing required vocabulary and individual techniques to support AAC users in learning to communicate about sexuality.

Speak Up Resources to Support Sexual Health Educators   [Top]

• Sexual Health Issues for AAC Users


• Sample Educational Topics for Training Sexual Health Educators who Support People who Use AAC in the Areas of Sexuality and Disability, Communication and Safeguarding


• Guidelines for Communicating with a Person who Uses AAC


• How to Use an AAC Interpreter


• Promoting Healthy Sexuality and Safeguarding in Youth who Use AAC – Guidelines for Parents, Teachers and Service Providers


• Tips for Working with Adults who Use AAC


• Making Services Accessible for People who Use AAC


• Speak Up Communication Displays


• How to Use Speak Up Communication Displays


• Speak Up Loan Kits


• Personal Stories of Adults who Use AAC

   [Top]