No diagnosis, no approval

The Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities is reminding the public that it cannot diagnose disabilities or decide independently whether a person qualifies for registration.

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The JCPD, in practice and in principle, does not have the authority to dictate or to say whether an individual has a disability or not.

Adrienne Pinnock, the council’s manager for corporate communications and public relations, said a medical professional or another appropriately licensed expert must name and certify the disability. Applications require both a medical eligibility form and a personal information form, completed and submitted by the relevant personnel.

“Once those things are in place, your documentation is authentic, your identification information is authentic, and the disability is named, then that application translates into confirmation to the registry,” Pinnock said. She added that a permanent impairment must be verified by a licensed practitioner before it can be added to the registry.

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It’s the licensed practitioner of the area that is the only person who has the skills and the authority to name and verify said disability, even for disabilities that are visible.

“It is never the correct posture to take to say this particular thing is a disability and this is not,” she said. The council says the relevant specialists must identify intellectual disabilities, mental illnesses and sensory impairments, while medical practitioners can name permanent disabilities resulting from medical conditions, such as an amputation linked to diabetes.

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It is never the correct posture to take to say this particular thing is a disability and this is not.