Library: News Releases
Dear Media Representative:
Governor Brad Henry has declared March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month along with the rest of the nation. We estimate there are approximately 50,000 people with developmental disabilities and mental retardation in this state.
The Oklahoma Department of Human Services Developmental Disabilities Services Division serves nearly 8,900 of those individuals who need help living and working in their communities. There are another 4,200 people on a waiting list for community services.
The theme for this year’s awareness month is “New Freedom in Oklahoma: Success is Within Our Grasp”. We hope to use this time to educate the public about people with developmental disabilities, their needs, and the vital programs and services that enable them to live and work outside of nursing facilities and institutions.
There will be several events held to commemorate “DD Awareness Month:”
- March 9-10 -- the Oklahoma Association of Persons in Supported Employment Conference will be held at the Tulsa Southern Hills Marriott.
- March 17 -- Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day Rally at the State Capitol. Begins at 11:30 a.m. on the south steps. Governor Brad Henry and several legislators have been invited to speak along with people with disabilities. Several hundred people with disabilities, their families, providers and advocacy organizations are expected to participate.
- April 4-5 -- the Governor’s Conference on Developmental Disabilities will be held at the Tulsa Southern Hills Marriott.
If you would like to focus local news stories or articles on this subject, we would be happy to assist you in arranging local interviews. We are in contact with people throughout the state who have developmental disabilities who are living and working in their communities.
Attached are some fact sheets about developmental disabilities. If you have questions regarding any of this material or if you would like assistance with local story development, call DDSD Public Information Director Sheree Powell, at: (405) 521-4972 or e-mail Sheree.Powell@OKDHS.org.
Think “People First”
Tips on talking and writing about people with disabilities
Language is a reflection of how people see each other. That’s why the words we use can hurt. It’s also why responsible communicators are now choosing language, which reflects the dignity of people with disabilities—words that put the person first, rather than the disability.
Read on for some tips on using language that empowers.
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Think people first. Say “a woman who has mental retardation” rather than “a mentally retarded woman.”
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Avoid words like “unfortunate,” “afflicted,” and “victim.” Also, try to avoid casting a person with a disability as a superhuman model of courage. People with disabilities are just people, not tragic figures or demigods.
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A developmental disability is not a disease. Do not mention “symptoms,” “patients,” or “treatment,” unless the person you are describing has an illness as well as a disability.
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Use common sense. Avoid terms with obvious negative or judgmental connotations, such as “crippled,” “deaf and dumb,” “lame,” and “defective.” If you aren’t sure how to refer to a person’s condition, just ask. And, if the disability is not relevant to your conversation or story, why mention it at all?
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Never refer to a person as “confined to a wheelchair.” Wheelchairs enable people to escape confinement. A person with a mobility impairment “uses” a wheelchair.
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Try to describe people without disabilities as “typical” rather than “normal.” People in the disability community often jokingly refer to those without disabilities as the “temporarily-abled” because most of us, at some point in our lives, will be faced with a disability.
FACTS ABOUT: DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AND MENTAL RETARDATION
WHAT IS A DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY?
A developmental disability is a term that includes disabilities that occur in the developmental years (before the age of 22). It may be caused by a physical or mental impairment or a combination of both. Developmental disabilities cannot be cured -- they are life-long and chronic.
Some examples of developmental disabilities include, but are not limited to: mental retardation, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, autism, Down Syndrome and Prader-Willi Syndrome.
Many states use different definitions to define developmental disabilities, but most are based on a version of the federal Developmental Disabilities Act (Pub. Law 106-402).
A person with a developmental disability will have substantial functional limitations in three or more areas of major life activities: self-care, receptive and expressive language, learning, mobility, self-direction, capacity for independent living and economic self-sufficiency.
Not everyone who has a developmental disability has mental retardation. For example, some persons born with cerebral palsy and autism have average or even higher than average mental capabilities. The popular movie "Rain Man," starring Dustin Hoffman, was about a man with autism who had almost genius level memory and mathematics skills, but experienced severe disabilities in many other major areas of his life.
A person with mental retardation typically has an I.Q. score of 70 or below and learns more slowly than others. The degree of mental retardation a person has affects how much and how quickly he or she can learn. Most have only mild retardation.
It is difficult to pinpoint exactly how many Oklahomans have mental retardation because so many are able to function well and live in their own communities. Studies have shown that 3 percent of Americans have mental retardation based on their I.Q. score.
In Oklahoma, we use that same percentage rate to estimate the number of people with mental retardation among the state’s general population.
The OKDHS Developmental Disabilities Services Division is currently serving about 8,900 people with mental retardation in their local communities. There are 4,200 people on a waiting list for community services.
What's the Difference?
| Mental Retardation | Mental Illness |
|---|---|
| 1. Mental retardation* refers to sub-average intellectual functioning, which lasts a lifetime. | 1. Mental illness has nothing to do with intelligence. Mental illness is that, an illness. It can be controlled with appropriate treatment and/or medication. Many people recover completely from mental illness. |
| 2. Mental retardation refers to impairment in social skills or adaptation | 2. A person with a mental illness may be very competent socially,but may have a character disorder or other aberration. |
| 3. National incidence: 3 percent of the general population | 3. National incidence: 16 to 20 percent of the general population |
| 4. Mental retardation is present at birth or occurs during the period of development. Mental retardation can also be the result of a brain injury. | 4. Mental illness may occur at any age. |
| 5. In mental retardation, some degree of intellectual impairment can be permanent. | 5. Mental illness is often temporary, and in many cases, the condition is reversible. |
| 6. A person with mental retardation can be expected to behave rationally at his/her functional level. | 6. A person with mental illness may vacillate between normal and irrational behavior. |
| 7. People with mental retardation can also experience different types of mental illness with symptoms such as hallucinations or severe depression, secondary to the condition of mental retardation. | 7. The term mental illness covers a wide variety of symptoms that may indicate that someone is in emotional trouble, including: belligerence, excessive moodiness, suspicion and mistrust or poor emotional control. |
*Mental retardation is a developmental disability. People with developmental disabilities may experience difficulty in such areas as self-care, language, mobility, learning, self-direction, independent living or self-sufficiency. Some common developmental disabilities in addition to mental retardation are epilepsy, autism, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, Down and Tourette syndromes.
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