Shelly Houser Teaches Professionals What Equality Looks Like for Disabled Persons

In Disabled, Empowerment, equality, Publisher Channel by Mary Kurek20th March 2022

Advocate for disabled persons, Shelly Houser, was born without a hip and leg but hasn’t let that slow her down for a minute. A bundle of determination, Shelly’s life is a how-to guide for persons who fight the mental battle of “I cannot.” The proud mother of 3 has had case studies written about her pregnancies and now consults with corporations and organizations on exactly how to bring equality to all disabled persons. She founded Inclusive Consulting Services to bring much-needed light to probably the most ignored piece of the equality conversation.

In this interview with Mary Kurek of Frontrunners Innovate, Shelly shared her journey, some resources, and gave us some examples of how she advocates and advises to achieve quality-of-life upgrades for everyone’s benefit.

Meet Shelly Houser. (38-minute video)

Additional Comments by Shelly Houser:

“Being a patient with a congenital disability I see the huge gap in communication and understanding between the medical community and their patients. As a standardized patient, teaching nursing students through simulations, I found a way to bridge that gap. Not only in the medical field but within the workforce as well.

At Inclusive Consulting, I am partnering with foundations, medical teams, teaching hospitals and institutions, or business groups that are seeking to learn best practices to listening, communicating, and respecting persons with disabilities. I have scheduled a presentation with an occupational nursing association this Fall, I have worked with the PA Historical Society to visit local historical parks and provide feedback and discuss with staff where changes could be made to become a more inclusive site. I have had conversations with virtual reality tech companies and this Spring I will be partnering with a Bucks County group that is building an eight-acre, inclusive public garden space.

Where am I going? My goal is to create partnerships both big and small that provide open conversations that drive excitement to become more inclusive, to think outside the box, and challenges others to consistently drive true diversity, equity, inclusion, and access. I have a link on my website to connect with international partners and understand that this is a process and that the first conversation is just one of many as we grow and learn together.

Who do I need to move forward with? I am looking for foundations, medical simulation centers, organizations that work in virtual reality, and businesses that are in need of help with understanding the ADA, first-person language, and how to develop protocols in safety, communications, and problem-solving. There may be other challenges I don’t even realize are out there that I’d be happy to discuss and work together on!”