After a major stroke his care giver applied for help under the PEI disability support program. He was approved but only after abusive comments by the DSP.

Gary Gray, stroke victim

SP: Gary Gray, our guest contributor, was past manager of the O’Leary, PEI Credit Union. He has been living in the Montague area for the past 14 years. He is a stroke survivor and an Islander with a disability.

My name is Gary and I had my experience with the DSP (Disability Support) program. After a rather major stroke in 2002 my care giver applied for help under the program. I was approved but only after some rather abusive comments by the DSP.

The following year I was visited for my review. The same DSP worker was so abusive that I was completely shaken.

I was shaken to the point that I stopped cashing my DSP cheques. During that visit, I requested some additional help. I was asked for my OT’s (occupational therapist) recommendation. I obtained the recommendation with no problem and tried to contact the DSP worker. To no avail, she had just disappeared.

So next year a new DSP worker came to do my review. I gave her 11 un-cashed cheques. The 12th came in after her visit and is still in my cupboard. I told her that I wanted to be taken off the program: I had suffered enough from the stroke and with dealing with my slow recovery. I did not need the abuse that I had been given through the DSP program.

I found myself in a very fragile state both mentally and physically for some time after my stroke. The DSP program was more abusive than supportive.

My recovery has progressed well to date and I feel my body and mind continuing to strengthen as time passes. Even now I find it difficult to write about my experience with DSP. My hope is that the administrators of the program will realize that the “S” stands for support not suppress!

There is a need for this program on Prince Edward Island. Maybe when Minister Gillan refers to “out there” he is referring to some other place. He just doesn’t seem to be in tune with the disabled folks on PEI. He never seems to talk as though he can relate to us.

There are sensitivity programs that are designed to assist if that were to be the case. This comment is not a slight nor is it a complaint, just my personal experience with the program.

SP – Thank you for sharing that. Gary has several blogs and a website. You can find him at Gary Gray

If you have a disability story to tell, tell us and we will put it on the Internet.