1. Deafblind Centre of
Excellence in Australia
17th Deafblind International World Conference
13 August 2019
Carla Anderson, National Director
Kate MacRae, CEO

2. Why?
Capturing our corporate knowledge and
respecting our history
►History
►NDIS
►Lack in research and training in deafblindness
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3. Purpose of Centre of Excellence
►Vision
“We partner to create a better future for people with
deafblindness through evidence based best practice in
Research and Training”.
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4. Framework of CoE
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Deafblind
Information
Australia
Consortium
Able Australia,
Senses,
DBA
NDIS ILC Grant
Outcome known
in August 2019
Able Research
Philanthropic
Grants
Partnerships with
universities
Able Training
Sector Specific
requests
Communication
Guide Training
Independent
Living Skills
Able Consultancy
Allied Health
Supervision
Communities of
Practice

5. Objective of Training
►To foster continuous improvement and enhance the skills and
knowledge of service providers, including interpreters, commguides
and allied health staff, to better meet the needs of people with
deafblindness.
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6. Objective of Research
►To improve policy and practice in deafblindness by better
understanding the needs of people with deafblindness through
partnering with them and their support networks and researchers,
to undertake relevant research which contributes to the current
evidence base.
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7. Objective of Consultancy
►Connecting people with deafblindness, and their support networks,
to each other and to leading practice evidence-based information.
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8. Our core team
 Content experts in deafblindness with over 70 years of
knowledge and experience.
 Carla Anderson AM, National Director of Centre of Excellence.
 Dr. Meredith Prain, Deafblind Consultant.
 Dennis Witcombe, Churchill Fellow and Deafblind communication
consultant.
 Alisha Hill, Community Development Worker in Adelaide
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9. Virtual or Physical space?
Online presence: Deafblind Information Hub
Hosted by Senses WA in partnership
Online training opportunities specifically on deafblindness
Physical presence: Ablelink Redesigned in partnership with clients
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10. Centre of Excellence Activities
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Support Co-ordination
Information, Brisbane
CommGuide Training
Program, Adelaide
Deafblind Awareness
Training, Brisbane City Council

11. Centre of Excellence Activities
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CommGuide Training,
Melbourne
Social Haptics Training,
Adelaide
Deafblind Personal Development
Training, Melbourne

12. Conclusion
►A communication plan will be developed and implemented
►Regular updates reports will be included in the newsletter to the key
stakeholders (people with deafblindness, services providers, NDIA,
and many more)
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13. Contacts
►carla.anderson@ableaustralia.org.au
►meredith.prain@ableaustralia.org.au
►Website: ableaustralia.org.au
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