Assistants and Intermediaries
A Communication Assistant
- supports a person communicating in everyday situations, non-critical situations such as meetings, educational events and public forums.
- can be a family member, support worker, a friend or a person on the CDAC assistance database
- is approved and authorized by the person they are assisting
- can be hired by an individual with a disability that affects their communication
- can be hired by an organization hosting an event or a meeting
- attended an online training from CDAC
- has at least 12 months work experience supporting people with disabilities
- needs further training from the individual they are assisting
- cannot do communication assessments, provide therapy or recommend communication methods and devices.
- cannot support a person who has no formal method of communicating. For example in an intensive care unit.
- cannot support a person in a critical communication situation. For example, giving consent to treatment or end of life directives.
- is not known, endorsed, accredited or paid by CDAC
A Communication Intermediary
- assists with communication in a police, legal or justice situation
- is a qualified Speech-Language Pathologists with additional training from CDAC to work in these settings
- is usually hired and paid by the police, legal and justice service
- can do communication assessments and recommend ways people can communicate in critical situations
- Is not known, endorsed, accredited or paid by CDAC