Drawing on a grounded theory study involving qualitative interviews with twenty-three participants(age>60 years); this presentation provides an overview of the shared experiences of DSI and explores the 'hidden work of caring' in a DSI context. Dual Sensory Impairment (DSI) refers to the presence of both vision and hearing loss and is considered a poorly defined chronic condition, prevalent in the older Australian population. DSI is underdiagnosed and if left untreated or, without appropriate support, undermines the ability of older people to live independently. DSI is associated with multiple social, physical, cognitive and emotional challenges and responsibility for caring for this group predominantly falls to family members, often with limited support. The caring dyad (family carer and family member with DSI) experience shared barriers to their social participation which compromise access to health care and social support networks, impacting their health and quality of life. This qualitative study selected participants (n=23) with DSI and their family carers from Vision Australia, who met the inclusion criteria. All participated in semi-structured interviews where broad issues relating to the social experiences of DSI were explored. Data suggests that informal caring in a DSI context is prevalent in the older DSI population, and that family carers misunderstand and minimise the social effects of DSI. Identification, targeted support and education of informal carers is important to improving outcomes.

Life after the Pandemic Usher service - This exciting session will be an enlightening and essential introduction into the intercultural, communicational, and medical aspects of Usher syndrome. There will be a focus on the key challenges that CV19 brought and how they were overcome by many. This will lead into new and exciting hybrid ways of working now and for the future. How do people with Usher feel when everything is back to normal? Do they feel different? Struggling? Have guiding methods changed? An opportunity for some Usher people to share their views and experiences with you. How our Usher service works with the Usher community as well as the professionals. There will be tips and insights into enabling engagement and community work to take place effectively and meeting the needs of this disparate community group. There will be something for everyone to learn and will be relevant to those with an interest in Deafblindness.

The research will attempt to analyse the communication methods used with critical focus on their strength and weaknesses as well as provide recommendations on what can be done to improve the communication access for persons with deaf-blindness. Deaf-blindness is defined as concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe communication needs. Some people are Deaf-blind from birth. Others may be born deaf or hard-of-hearing and become blind or visually impaired later in life. Vision and hearing are the primary senses through which we collect information. The development of social skills and environmental interaction of individuals who are deaf-blind is affected when these channels for receiving information are impaired or not functioning. Some deaf-blind use natural signs for communication. Others know the tactile sign languages of their countries. However, there is need to understand how these communication strategies are employed effectively to ensure that persons with deaf blindness have access to valuable information needed for their survival. The study will take a qualitative approach and a case study design will be used.

Since its inception in 1978, CDBA-BC has had on some level, a Summer Recreation Program for the children and youth with deafblindness that we support. This has undergone changes over the years but continues to support families in various areas and venues of BC during the summer. Through the pandemic, we had to rethink our Summer Recreation Program and developed our Virtual Recreation Program, which we have found to be a huge benefit and lots of fun for those participating all over British Columbia. We will share how the Virtual Recreation Program came to be, the benefits, the pitfalls, and the growth and expansion over the years. We have learned so much from this program and are now reaching so many more families that we support throughout the province. Through the growth of these programs, the children and youth with deafblindness, their families and Intervenors have benefitted greatly in many areas: sensory development, communication, fine and gross motor skills, social development, family/sibling networking and Intervention strategies. This recreation activity can be adapted for any funding model, organization, individual ability and setting. It is designed to offer inclusion and accessibility and reach children and youth of all ages and abilities throughout our province.

Preparing for and responding to emergency and disaster situations within the DeafBlind community requires education and training of DeafBlind individuals utilizing self-efficacy, self-advocacy, and self-preservation to save lives, bring about awareness within the DeafBlind community, mitigate damages and costs. To dispel the myth that "someone will come and get you" in emergencies and to promote self-advocacy as a skill that can save one's life. To promote the idea that "The greatest indicator of personal independence is the ability to feel capable of preserving your own life and the lives of others. Emergency Preparedness Disasters: The Emergency Preparedness Disasters will engage and educate the audience about the following key concepts that will ultimately lead to Self-Efficacy, Self-Advocacy, & Self-Preservation. What are disasters and how can they impact you? What is shelter-in-place? What to do if you need to evacuate? Who is your support team? The presentation will further introduce the following strategic tools and techniques that the DeafBlind Individual and their families can enact in preparation for survival during a disaster. What is the purpose of a disaster kit and its basic contents? Working with local emergency responders. In conclusion, Emergency Preparedness Disasters the purpose is to enable and educate the DeafBlind person with their families on how to be self-reliant with tools and preparation, so they can be best prepared to survive through any emergency. To instill and educate the audience of self-efficacy, self-advocacy, and self-preservation of a person's ability to meet the challenges of emergency and disaster situations, to save themselves and family members.

(Presented on Tuesday only)

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) is a classification system focused on individuals with disabilities. Developed by the World Health Organization, it provides a common framework for measuring health at individual and population levels. For specific health conditions, there are Core Sets which are divided into 3 phases. By linking outcome measures to ICF codes, this completes the first phase in establishing an ICF Core Set. To establish this, pre-existing literature is analyzed and discussed in this presentation. The literature review (researcher perspective) examines the data available in relation to functioning in deafblindess and identifies descriptors used to evaluate functioning.A systematic review, with the study population defined as adults living with deafblindness, over the age of 18 and includes congenital and acquired deafblindness. Literature was limited to within the past 10 years and include peer-reviewed articles in English found on scientific databases, such as Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Central, CINAHL. Linking was completed using the WHO Research Branch ICF Linking Rules.131 studies were included in the systematic review with the majority conducted in Europe and North America. Various research methodologies and study designs were used, and the range of participants differed. Categories identified include body function, activities and participation, environmental factors, body structure, and personal factors. Currently, there is no ICF Core Set developed for deafblindness. With the creation of one, it can ease challenges in accessibility and public policy. Using existing literature, categories can be identified to help create a common language specifically for deafblindness.