Access Tech and Job Access

00:07 S1

Hello everyone. Welcome to Talking Tech. This edition, available from March the 18th, 2024. I'm Stephen Jolley. Great to have you with us - listening maybe through Vision Australia Radio, associated stations of the Radio Reading Network or the Community Radio Network. There is also the podcast - to catch that, all you need to do is search for the two words talking tech and Danica. Nor come usually on a Tuesday afternoon just after it's been produced. Another option is to ask your Siri device or smart speaker to play Vision Australia Radio, Talking Tech podcast. Vision Australia Radio Talking Tech podcast. 

Normally, Vision Australia's national access technology manager Damo McMorrow was with me. Damo is still tied up with CSUN, the International Assistive Technology Conference duties, but he will be back with us next week. In the meantime, one of Damo's team is with me - and that's Steve Monigatti from Vision Australia - I think you're located in Bendigo. Steve, welcome.

01:12 S2

Thanks. Stephen. Yeah, that's right in in Bendigo, central Victoria.

01:16 S1

And your role is in Access Technology Service - Development Lead. And I'm sure as soon as I've uttered those words there are people screaming at me into their device saying, Will you ask your guest what an Access Technology Service Development Lead does?

01:32 S2

Yeah. So I was previously an Access Technology Specialist. So the people who go out to to clients from Vision Australia that go out... to see clients and talk to clients about their technology needs and their goals, and now I've moved into the role as a technology lead. So I actually mentor the ATSs, in particular in Victoria and Queensland. So I do some training, I coach them through different scenarios and and talk them through different options. So it's a mentoring role with all the ATSs.

02:08 S1

An ATS is...?

02:10 S2

Our Access Technology Specialist.

02:13 S1

You joined VA 18 years ago.

02:16 S2

Yeah that's right. It started a very originally as a recreation worker at Vision Australia, but quickly moved into the AT role, the Assistive Technology role and have been working in the field for about 17 of the 18 years.

02:33 S1

So how did you get interested in Assistive or Access Technology?

02:37 S2

It was part of my background. So I'd completed a postgraduate qualification in computing and had worked in that field for a number of years. And then the opportunity arose that we needed to expand the the ATS role in Bendigo. And so the opportunity came up for the position in Bendigo.

02:57 S1

When you started to move into it and you had to get your head around using a computer in what's not really a natural way for people who can see to use it, how did that go for you?

03:11 S2

You're quite right. It's a very steep learning curve for the first 3 to 6 months, you know, navigating Jaws and as you said, discussing all the acronyms for a start. But then, you know, learning how to use the magnification, the screen readers and then moving eventually into being able to use some of the Braille devices as well. So it was a 12 month learning curve to get up to speed with, with many of those things. And then it's a consistent process in just updating your skills, updating your knowledge, and keeping you informed of of what's out there and what's happening. 

My computer starts every day with Jaws running. So Jaws is a screen reader for Windows, and I try not to touch my mouse throughout the whole day, so I try and navigate my whole day just using the keystrokes as a screen reader user would do.

04:00 S1

We've seen lots of change with Access Technology over the time you've been with Vision Australia. What's really stood out for you? Sort of some of the milestones along the way.

04:11 S2

When I started in the role, we spent a lot of time teaching people around computers and windows computers and, you know, to turn the computer off, press the start button and things like that. And it changed remarkably the day the the iPhone started to become popular and available, and then the iPad and all the smartphones that followed. So our role has really, really changed from, you know, being PC based and PC centred to, you know, the vast majority of our work these days is around tablets and phones and... connectivity and the different apps and things that are available with... those devices.

04:49 S1

I understand that the Access Technology role at Vision Australia is about supporting people with their use of the technology, Maybe in their personal life, in their education, in their employment, as well as working with external organisations like educators and employers, etc.. Tell me about, in particular, the Job Access program of Vision Australia.

05:17 S2

Job Access is a federal government-funded program, and it enables people who are employed to get the technology they need in order to be able to complete their work tasks. People can access it through either their Disability Employment service, if they're using a disability employment service can access the job access funding when they get a job, or they can apply directly to job access. Either them or their employer can apply. And and that starts a process of assessment around what their work tasks are and determining what... equipment they need for people to be able to undertake the roles associated with their tasks at work.

05:57 S1

So someone might have been in a role for quite some time. They become aware of a new piece of technology, and they can get their employer to put their hand up and investigate it through Vision Australia.

06:10 S2

That's right. And I've had some people, I think I've done 4 or 5 assessments for over the years. So you can certainly go back and as job roles change or new equipment becomes available, then you can go back to job access and have that review process and re-establish what equipment they need and, and go through that process. The great thing about Job Access is it's... both quick... so it, we only get 12 days from the day we get notice of the assessment to actually having completed the assessment. Often those reports are reviewed quite quickly and the employee gets an answer about that equipment very quickly. So within 3 to 4 weeks from lodging the application They can.... have that equipment working for them in their workplace.

07:01 S1

Let's just look at some sort of fictitious example. My boss contacts Vision Australia, says I have a person who has low vision or is blind. What are the steps from there on?

07:15 S2

If Vision Australia is given... the job, we'd make contact and discuss their vision and their roles, and then we'd go out to the workplace and actually conduct an assessment and retake some, some equipment that we think might be appropriate for their for their work tasks. And that can that can be all sorts of things. So I've been in dairies, in a... cowshed, in a dairy, looking at lighting and magnification in that setting. And I've been at banks and head offices in... Melbourne. So it's a really a varied role. It's amazing the different places I've been to, in assisting in this way.

07:57 S1

Is it usually to support someone getting a new job or in their existing job?

08:03 S2

Well, both. It's 50, over 50 on that. Certainly people that are starting out can go through the process and get the equipment they need. Or as I said, if people's jobs changes or they need different equipment, we can go back again and and have a look at that equipment and conduct that review.

08:22 S1

Mm. I guess the way you interact with the people that you're visiting varies. Someone doing an ongoing job and somebody starting out in a job when they're starting out, the employer, potential employer is probably a little bit sort of nervous about how this is going to work. Whereas once that person has been in a role for quite some time, as you know, had that connection with the organisation, they're wanting to make the best of things for him, put the best technology in his hands.

08:52 S2

Yeah. That's right. So, you know, in that case with a new employee, you know, we'd often sit down with the employer as well, initially to start with and have a chat and discuss the role and, and the job access process so that they're familiar and understand how the actual process works. Also, at the conclusion of the of the assessment, get them back again and, you know, discuss the equipment that's going to be recommended and what that will do and usually quite often demonstrated as well. So they've actually got an understanding of what we're talking about. 

But as you said with with clients that are at the workplace already, it's about usually about some sort of modification and some different equipment. So the the process changes a little bit.

09:35 S1

So somebody might be driving along somewhere in Australia listening to this program casually and thinking, maybe we can do more for one of the people in our team who has low vision or can't see at all. Who would they make contact with to explore the job access opportunities.

09:56 S2

There's probably two ways to go about that. They could look it up online, either typing in to a search engine, job access or the Employment Assistance Fund. And there's some, certainly some great information online. Again, that's the federal government site, that's... got that information. Alternatively, if they've got contact at the local Vision Australia office, they could make contact. And one of the Job Access panel members could actually make contact and have a chat to them as well.

10:23 S1

So are there other organisations apart from Vision Australia who are part of the Job Access scheme?

10:30 S2

Obviously we're here today talking about people who are blind or have low vision, but it's broader than that. So it's all disability. So there are occupational therapists and... other service providers that provide this service. And there are other providers in the vision space as well.

10:48 S1

So there's a great opportunity for someone to contact that program, or I guess they could contact Vision Australia directly and find out more about the program. Is that right?

10:58 S2

That's right. Yes. Yeah. Yep. There's... panel members across, the eastern, the eastern states, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. There's panel members. Vision Australia has panel members in each of those states. So they'd be able to talk people through it.

11:15 S1

Mm. Excellent.

11:16 S2

But the service is available in the other states as well. But Vision Australia just provides a service across those states.

11:22 S1

Yeah. Yeah. So you're involved with the job access program. What other things do you do in your job as the the lead you talked about mentoring or leading other access technology specialists. What sorts of other things do you do?

11:39 S2

We've just been running induction for we've had five new access technology specialists this year, so we've just been running induction for them, and there's a continual, um, training program and building on their skills and knowledge over over the next 12 months will be supporting them. And we also do services into Tasmania and Northern Territory as part of a contract with the Department of Education. So I go up into Darwin every year and for a week and, uh, provide assessments in the schools up in Darwin. And one of the other team members, Kent, goes down to Tassie 2 or 3 times a year and provides the same service. 

We're also doing some consulting work as well. So at the moment I'm working with a couple of external organisations and providing some consultancy around accessibility on the computer.

12:27 S1

Steve, as an experienced hand, I nearly said an old hand with access technology. What in your quiet moments are you looking forward to in the next sort of 1 to 5 years?

12:41 S2

It's an enormous period of change at the moment, and it will be interesting where the AI will take us. I guess we're waiting to see where that will head. Apps like Seeing Eye and Be My Eyes and other apps where you can ask it questions and get a picture described to you, and then ask it more details about the picture. Jaws has got that smart feature function where again, you can get a description of of an image that's on your computer and things like that. So that whole AI side of things is really going to grow. We've seen the Meta glasses and what they can do. And as different options come out in that space as well. 

So it's going to be more mainstream products that become available using that, those AI features and that really expand what what is available.

13:32 S1

Well, Steve, it's been great speaking with you today. Good luck as you continue your work making a difference for so many people around the country. Steve Monigatti, who is a Vision Australia Access Technology service development lead Based in Bendigo in Victoria. Thanks for chatting with us on Talking Tech.

13:52 S2

Thanks, Dave and thanks for the catch up. It's been great.

13:55 S1

And before we go, a reminder that you can find details of what we've been talking about in this and previous editions of the program by going to varadio.org/talking tech. VA radio dot org slash talking tech. And to write to the program, damo.mcmorrow@visionaustralia.org - Yes, he's still checking his inbox. Damo McMorrow - M C M O R R O W - at Vision Australia dot org - and Damo will be back next week with a lot to tell us about CSUN. This has been Talking Tech. My guest was Steve Monigatti, a member of Damo's team as an Access Technology Service Development Lead. I'm Stephen Jolley. Stay safe. We'll talk more tech next week. See you.