21 Jun 2025

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:06):
Hi, I'm Jamie Morton, a member of the Aussie Steelers,
and you're listening to leisure link with Peter Greco on
the Vision Australia radio network.

S2 (00:39):
It's just gone 5:00 and as we enter, the longest
night of the year was the shortest hour of the year.
It's the best 90 minutes of radio of the week
here on Lateline on radio. Radio 1190 7 a.m. Adelaide.
Online at Via radio via Radio Digital in Adelaide to
Darwin through the Community Radio Plus app. Look for Vision Australia,

(01:03):
Radio Adelaide Our friends listening through 103.9 FM in Esperance
in Western Australia. Great support from Disability Media Australia. Find
out much more about them at Powered Media p o
w e media and also through the Reading Radio Network.
Peter Greco saying great to be here. Thank you so

(01:23):
much for making time to listen to us. This program
coming to you from Garner Land come to you very shortly.
We'll catch up with Damien Methode, who, um, was a
member of the Aussie Steelers who competed in the big
tournament in Adelaide just last week. How did we go?
We'll find out very soon, I say Muller will join us.
He's just received a scholarship for goalball. He's at Adelaide Uni.

(01:46):
We'll find out a bit more about Isaiah also. Um,
we'll be joined by Ali Scott. A protest, a rally
next Saturday, the 28th of June in Sydney Road in Melbourne.
Not much accessibility being shown there. Ali will tell us
why and what we might be able to do, or
what we might be able to do in a team.
Pat McHugh, our resident counsellor, will join us. Stays in

(02:09):
hospital is Pam's topic. We'll also catch up with Olivia,
Barry and Anna. Tune from one three cabs. Their app
has been updated. Much more user friendly, much better. Particularly
if people have assistance. Dogs will chat to those lovely ladies.
And then we'll also catch up with Reshma Patel from

(02:29):
Specsavers talking about presbyopia, a condition that, um, you may
be having and not know about it. Reshma will tell
us about that and Mahesh Nath will join us from
Pacific Vision. Mahesh has just been to Site City. What
did he come back with? Well, it's been a fabulous

(02:53):
time for wheelchair rugby, particularly in Adelaide and certainly in Australia.
Let's chat to one of the stars from the Aussie
Steelers Damien Damien, great to meet you. Thanks for your time.

S1 (03:03):
Thank you so much for having me. I'm looking forward
to speaking with you.

S2 (03:06):
Yeah, well, you're a bit of a new champ as
far as the Aussie Steelers go.

S1 (03:09):
Yeah, yeah, I was actually lucky enough to make my
debut down in Adelaide there in front of an incredible
crowd and had an amazing event. And I think it's
probably one of the best events on Aussie soil today.

S2 (03:22):
And of course we did. Okay, well we did better
than okay but couldn't quite grab the grab. The win.

S1 (03:28):
Yeah, well we come in with a fairly new team
compared to the Paris Paralympics last year, hoping to blood
four new debutants. So we did pretty well. Uh, other
teams brought some very experienced lineups and to get the
silver was amazing. Like, anyone would have wanted the gold,

(03:49):
but we were pretty happy with that silver. And yeah,
we thought we worked pretty hard and fought pretty strong
for it.

S2 (03:55):
It was a pretty close game too, wasn't it?

S1 (03:57):
Yeah, 100%. Yeah. We were up at half time and
then they were up and then we were up and
then yeah, they managed to push us out by two
in the end. But 2 or 3. So it was
it was good. It was. We just wanted to make
it entertaining for the crowd really.

S2 (04:11):
What about the crowd? I mean, the nationals were down
here in Adelaide, uh, about this time last year. Might
have been in May, I reckon. I went along to
that and had a great time. The crowd really got
into it. It's kind of an easy game for the
crowd to get involved with, isn't it? A bit of, uh,
crash and bash and a bit of rough stuff? I
think the crowd loved that, don't they?

S1 (04:30):
Yeah, 100%. Yeah. The the sound of the chairs always
gets everyone going. And you hear metal smashing on metal.
It's like watching a car crash, nearly hearing the crash.
So it's always good. And it's time for the crowd.
And yeah, this year it was just the work Chris
and Kelsey did in the background of wheelchair Rugby Australia.
To put bums in seats was absolutely incredible. I don't

(04:51):
think I've ever been out in front of that many
people before. So it was it was unreal to be
out there.

S2 (04:57):
And of course, as you say, getting through to the final. So,
you know, from an Australian point of view, you gave
us a good ride.

S1 (05:04):
Yeah, 100%. Yeah. There were 3 or 4 days leading
up to the finals was very nerve wracking. We wanted
to make sure we were in that final game. So
every game we were going out there pretending like it
was a finals because we wanted to make sure we
gave Adelaide the biggest show of all. On that Sunday.

S2 (05:20):
I talked about the crash and bash of the game
and the crowd loving it. I reckon there's probably, um,
one group that loved it more. That's the players, isn't it?

S1 (05:28):
Yeah, hundreds can't get a good collision out there. And
you know very well they, they heard at the very
top of the theatre like it's when. Yeah it's pretty incredible.
And when you can take a hit like as a
low pointer especially I love taking a big hit. And
when I know they can't get through or I stumped them,
it's pretty incredible feeling.

S2 (05:49):
It's interesting game isn't it? Because I mean, obviously the
Paralympics over the last few years have got much more profile,
which is great, but wheelchair rugby is always kind of
been up and about as far as publicity goes. I mean,
I remember a 60 minute segment on wheelchair rugby quite
some time ago calling it Murderball, and I guess internationally
there's a fair bit of publicity about it. So it's

(06:11):
one of the sports that, you know, people, if they
don't know the intricacies of it, they certainly know the
sport itself.

S1 (06:16):
Yeah. Hundred percent. I think there's so many things that
draw people in. I think one of the big factors
is the multi gender of the sport, like the when
people tune in and see the male females competing against
each other, not just the bash and crash, but the
strategy behind it. There's so many things happening on the
court and once you sort of watch it and you

(06:37):
sort of start understanding what's going on, it's like watching
a game of bumper cars and chess at the same time.
You know, there's so many things happening and it's so
entertaining for everyone. And just the determination of all the
athletes out there. And, you know, some of them are
Cavorting through so many different things in their personal lives.
Go out there and just make a mess of the

(06:59):
court is pretty incredible to watch, really.

S2 (07:02):
We've been speaking to a number of the players over many,
many years and, you know, even players that have retired,
that's how long we go back. But the game's fairly, um,
structured in terms of, uh, set plays and that sort
of stuff. So I guess what I'm asking is particularly
given the fact there were so many new players on
the scene, you know, that's a more than credible performance,

(07:23):
because I guess it takes a bit of time to
kind of gel and work out match plays and that
sort of stuff.

S1 (07:27):
Yeah, 100%. Yeah. We spend like, I'm lucky enough. I'm
in Queensland where I think six of the athletes we,
I went on court with were all from Queensland. But
we also had, you know, a number of training camps
where we all got together and played together. And thankfully
we were a pretty strong domestic tournament these days that
we all get the chance to not only play with

(07:49):
each other, but play against each other. So it does.
It takes a lot of practice and a lot of
a lot of commitment to make sure that we're all
speaking to each other and we're all speaking the same
talk as well. Like, you know, there's a lot of
zoom meetings and other team meetings that go into each game.
So yeah, it takes takes a good amount of commitment
and practice.

S2 (08:09):
Yeah, sure it does, of course. But typically the coach
he played. So that's an advantage for for everyone.

S1 (08:15):
Yeah 100%. Like you can even see it across the
international stage. A lot of the big coaches now are
former athletes, which you know, makes a lot of sense.
You know, takes a player to become a great coach.
So yeah, there's a lot of amazing coaches out there
that are like don't get me wrong, there's a lot
of great able bodied coaches. But yeah, the teams that

(08:36):
are really doing well come from a really good, strong
player coach.

S2 (08:40):
And I guess from a kind of a personal development
point of view or even a career path point of view.
I mean, you've just started so, you know, this is
years away for you, but it's kind of cool that
there's a potential for a coaching career for someone who
wants to sort of go down that path after playing.

S1 (08:57):
Yeah, 100%, especially here in Australia. The Paralympics and AIS
are always pushing things, and QAS are always pushing coaching
careers and helping more people come through the pathways up
here on the sunny coast. I actually I do a
little bit of coaching already. I do some volunteer coaching
and get a bit of a special program going. Yeah,

(09:17):
it's pretty exciting times these days.

S2 (09:19):
Yeah, I've been away from rugby, but I mean, you've
got people like Louise Savage who obviously, uh, you know,
was an elite athlete now coaching. Uh, we spoke to, uh,
Brad Ness the other day who's coaching the, um, the women's, uh,
gliders team as well. So, uh, it's not just in
wheelchair rugby, but other sports that, uh, athletes that are
making their way as coaches go as well.

S1 (09:41):
Yeah, 100%. It's it's a really good pathway. And especially
you know, you get athletes that really it speaks to
them that sort of mentoring slash coaching role. So you know,
at the end of the day they may not coach
at the highest level, but they may coach the athlete
that gets the highest level. They're there to inspire. And
that's what a great thing about having a good coach is.

S2 (10:02):
Great point. You're listening to lately here on Vicious Radio,
radio 1190 7 a.m. in Adelaide and across the Vision
Australia and Reading Radio Network, where speaking to Damien Morton,
who's a member of the Aussie Steelers, who won silver
in Adelaide not so long ago. I mean, tell us
a bit about your pathway then, because I guess that's
the other thing. It's much more structured in terms of

(10:24):
an opportunity to start off and then you end up
playing for Australia.

S1 (10:28):
Yeah, 100% these days in wheelchair rugby is is great.
There's a really set out pathway now. I started off
just up here in Queensland playing socially just going out
you know the Wednesdays. And so I committed myself to
a 4 or 5 days a week of training and
then played at a national championships in Division two, which was,
you know, a good starting point and managed to get

(10:50):
a bit of a selection there, a bit of a
look in for the Aussie development. And then we now
have the National League that runs which is there for,
you know, all the new up and comers. And it's
really become amazing pathway to work Chris Kelsey have done
in his football. Rugby is just incredible. Then yeah I
played for UQ, which I've managed to play 50 caps for,

(11:12):
which being one of the first wheelchair rugby players to
do that. And then yeah, got my few Aussie development
international caps. And yeah, to make my Aussie Steelers debut
this year was just absolutely amazing. The process has been incredible.
I'm glad to be one of the first ones going
through it to help work out the games, but yeah,

(11:34):
I've been ecstatic to be a part of it the
whole time.

S2 (11:37):
I guess it speaks to the kind of quote unquote
professionalism of the sport. I mean, we talked about the
coaching camps and Brad Dubberley being an ex-player, who's the coach?
But also if the pathways are now much more established,
I guess, you know, for you probably for the, uh,
the NRL, maybe more than the AFL. But, you know,
those clubs have also got those structured paths for their players, academies, etc..

(11:58):
So it just means that the players are going to
be a better finished product if it doesn't sound too crude.

S1 (12:04):
Yeah, 100%. Yeah. I'm more of a rugby union man.
Okay I'm in Queensland so yeah, I follow Queensland Reds
but I play rugby union. But yeah, like you said
having a pathway, having something structured there that any player
can come in and go, okay, I need to start
here and I can go here, then I'll get to here.
And it's just incredible now, like we've never had such

(12:27):
a set pathway within wheelchair rugby. So to have it
now as there's so many new athletes coming through, like
even in Adelaide we had junior competition. So most juniors
even to, you know, know that very well that they
have a plan that they can follow now and even
to just Australia. Having a juniors is a first in

(12:49):
our history. So yeah, it's pretty incredible time to be
in wheelchair rugby.

S2 (12:52):
How did you get into the sport, Damien? Are you
happy to talk a bit about your, um, you know,
situation to get to be playing wheelchair rugby?

S3 (12:58):
Yeah, 100%.

S1 (12:59):
So. Oh, it's 11 years now. When I had a
spinal cord injury, after I dove off a boat, I
was sitting in the spinal cord rehab unit at Brisbane there.
And like a lot of athletes that play wheelchair rugby
with spinal cord injuries, I was sitting there one day
and someone came around and said, have you watched the
documentary Murderball? And I said, no, and I watched that,

(13:21):
and I was like, oh my God, let me at it.
And then they organised to come and try day and
we went out and watched. At the time it was
some of the wheelchair rugby greats like Ryan Scott and
the other guys getting around, and we watched them train
and it took me a little while to fully commit
to it. I after my injury, I sort of had

(13:41):
a 4 or 5 years where I sort of just
sort of played very socially, never committed. And then one
day I just sort of thought, you know what? I
need to push myself and get into it and get involved,
you know, and it's I haven't looked back since. It's
made me who I am today. I'm a coach, I'm
a dad. I'm a husband. I'm a everything. I, you know,

(14:04):
seeking employment like I've pushed myself way beyond what I
ever thought I would be. Sitting in a bed, sitting
in bed 11 years ago thinking, you know, my world's
come to an end. My spinal cord injury. Now I'm
an international athlete. So, yeah, you know, I never would
have thought I would have been here. Really.

S2 (14:22):
I'd imagine there'd be a time or there would be
times when you think, why me? I mean, you know,
you're a young man, obviously, with a huge, uh, potential
career ahead of you in whatever you choose to do.
And then something like this happens. I mean, I know, yeah,
you can't plan for it, and bad stuff happens, but
you know, that that must be, um, a tough thing
to come to terms with.

S3 (14:41):
Yeah, 100%.

S1 (14:42):
Yeah. Like I said, yeah, 11 years ago when it happened,
it's just I was 21 and, you know, I had
everything in front of me and the world in my
hands ready to take it on. And yeah, something like
this happens. And at the end of the day, like,
I had such an amazing family and support network around
me and a lot of people said a good attitude.

(15:04):
I guess. I always, always try to look on the
bright side of life, the happiness. And yeah, just sort
of make sure I just sort of hold on to
those little positive things in life. You know, just getting
out of bed every day is a good victory most
of the time for someone with my sort of level
of function. So to make sure I'm happy to be

(15:25):
out of bed and get out of bed every day is,
you know, start the start the day off. Right.

S2 (15:30):
It's a very powerful message, isn't it? I mean, you know,
sometimes people can grizzle about the least important things. And,
you know, perhaps if you put yourself in someone else's position,
it might give you a bit of a different perspective.

S3 (15:41):
Yeah, 100%.

S1 (15:42):
You know, I was just talking to someone this morning.
You know, we're living in a prison. A pretty amazing
time in civilization right at the moment. You know, we
got the best medical care. We got the best of
the best of everything. So, you know, it's just take
those little steps. Enjoy those little victories every day. And. Yeah,
just keep working.

S2 (16:03):
What's ahead of you that know particularly as the Steelers
you've had this big tournament. What's ahead now. Because I
guess you know there's uh the games in three years time.
But there's a few big events between now and then.

S3 (16:16):
Yeah 100%.

S1 (16:17):
So thankfully after Adelaide we all got a bit of
a well break. We've had a two week break and
then now we straight back into it. Really. We're training hard.
We got a the Asia Oceania qualifiers in October November sorry.
Over in Thailand which you know we're all fighting for
positions they study athletes within the Aussie Broad program at

(16:40):
the moment. So we all got to fight for those
12 positions going to Thailand to qualify for the World
Cup next year in Brazil. So yeah, it's uh it's
not an easy time at the moment. We all there's
so many of us and we're all fighting for that spot.
So yeah, it's back into training business as usual and
working as hard as we all can.

S2 (17:01):
Is there a bit of, uh, you know, friendly rivalry
or like, you know, obviously you take it pretty seriously.
If there's a guy that might be, you know, in
a position to take their spot, I guess you've got
to just work a bit harder.

S3 (17:10):
Yeah, 100%.

S1 (17:11):
You know, that's that's what make makes any elite sport great.
You know, is that hunger that that the knowing that
someone else is there ready to take your spot is
something that makes you get out of bed and go, okay,
I've got to work a bit harder on this today.
I've got to make sure I, I improve this or,
you know, it's it's something that always drives every great

(17:31):
athlete is great competition and yeah, it's it's these like
I said, these days with all these, there's so many
new people. Like I go and watch the Division two at, uh,
the national championships down there in Adelaide. And there's some
young guys coming through there that look like they want it,
you know. So I've got to make sure I stay
in the top of my game and keep training and yeah,

(17:54):
but also to be there to mentor those guys and
make sure that they know that this sport is great
and they can, you know, you can achieve some amazing
things with this sport.

S2 (18:03):
Terrific. Well, Damien, really appreciate you speaking to us. Congratulations on, um,
on the silver medal with Netherlands. That beat us, wasn't it?

S1 (18:09):
Yeah. Netherlands come through in the end. We had a
bit of a rough time with them in the preliminary
rounds as well, with sort of. It was a bit
of back and forth as well, but they brought a
very experienced team and we were just happy to get
out there and give them a good run for their
money at least anyway.

S2 (18:25):
Terrific. Damien, we wish you well. Thanks for speaking to us.
We'll be following your career very closely.

S1 (18:30):
Thank you so much for having me. And I've thoroughly
enjoyed being talking with you, Peter.

S2 (18:35):
That's a Demi Moore. He's a member of the Aussie Steelers,
winning silver in Adelaide, and there was still plenty of
wheelchair rugby to come. So we'll keep across the results
of our wheelchair rugby team, the mighty Aussie Steelers. For
some fantastic news for one of our up and coming
gold ballers. I just received a scholarship which I'm sure

(18:58):
he'd be delighted about. Oh, it's great to meet you.
Thanks for your time and congratulations. Thanks. Tell us about this.
It's the first scholarship of its type.

S4 (19:06):
Yeah, apparently. I mean, I didn't realize that when I
first got. I only realized that when I met the
guy who, um, started it, and I was like, oh,
that's cool.

S2 (19:13):
No, it's it's, uh, from the IRS and also for, uh,
sport and fitness.

S4 (19:17):
Yeah. Pretty much.

S2 (19:19):
Well, tell us about, uh, how it happened. Did you
have to apply for it or did someone nominate you? And,
you know, they they they said, this guy's pretty cool.
We'll give it to him. How'd that happen?

S4 (19:29):
So, uh, hat work is basically. Yeah, you had to
apply for it, So I apply for a couple of
things through the union because like, you know, like you
apply for various different things. And I happen to get
this one. And I was like, huh? I didn't actually
expect to get that one.

S2 (19:41):
What was it like when you got the, uh, the
the notification? I believe that, uh oh, I hear that
you were pretty pleased.

S4 (19:47):
I was also surprised.

S2 (19:50):
I mean, uh, yeah. Do you want to say how
much of this in terms of, uh, financial benefit?

S4 (19:54):
It's a three year scholarship. So long as you stay
at the uni. Um, and $5,000 a year over the
three years. So $5,000 per year for three years, as
long as you stay at the uni. So if I,
you know, decided not to go to uni next year,
then I wouldn't get it obviously, but for that year.
But yeah.

S2 (20:08):
Now you're a young man with a vision impairment. So
I guess, you know, maybe if you were trying to
find a bit of part time work, like some of your, um,
mates at uni, it might not be quite as easy.
So it's kind of going to help with lots of
different things.

S4 (20:21):
Yeah, it should do because yeah, you're right that that
sort of thing can be more difficult. It's not that
it can't be done, but I haven't done it myself yet.
But it is more challenging, particularly when you have no
vision at all. I've found.

S2 (20:30):
Yeah.

S4 (20:31):
Just takes a bit more work, I think.

S2 (20:32):
Yeah, well, I know that. I know that you've been
playing goalball well for a long time. I mean, not
for a long time, because you're not that old, but, uh,
since the very young age.

S4 (20:42):
Yeah. So I've been playing for about nine years now.
I started when I was ten.

S2 (20:45):
How did you discover the sport or how did how
did it find you?

S4 (20:48):
Well, I was I went to a South Australian school
for vision impaired sesame. I think they had an extra
s these days, but who knows. It wasn't an extra s,
but I was there. So anyway, so I was I
think what year was that. 3 or 4 or something.
And you had your PE teacher and he showed it
to me and I was like, this is great. Pretty much.
And then I just loved it. So I went out
to the local like, um, started going out to the

(21:10):
global South Australia. That session is about halfway through 2016
and then pretty much haven't stopped since.

S2 (21:15):
Okay. What about in terms of, um, you know, when
you thought, I mean, yes, I love it, but also
either you or someone said, hey, you know, you're pretty
good at this.

S4 (21:24):
Well, a couple of different things. I mean, I played
for a few years. So in 2019 I went to
I made into the the youth team that we went to. Well,
I was here at the time. We went to the
Youth World Championships 2019, which was hosted here. But um,
I have to admit, I, I was alright at the time,
but our team didn't do particularly well.

S2 (21:43):
You carried the team, did you? You carried the team.

S4 (21:45):
Oh of course, let's go with that. Not really.

S2 (21:48):
Yeah.

S4 (21:48):
Yeah, I think probably about, um. So then my first men's, uh,
competition was in Bahrain for regionals in 2022. Asia-Pacific regionals,
that is. And then probably what I actually started to
be like, I probably wouldn't say that I actually started
to be good at it until I started putting a
bit more work in. It was probably about halfway through
about 2023 when I actually started to be decent at it. Like,
I was kind of okay before that, but I hadn't
really started to put put that much work into for

(22:10):
that makes sense.

S2 (22:11):
And I guess realistically, if you want to play for Australia,
you've got to kind of try and lock into an
elite athlete, pretty much.

S4 (22:17):
And I didn't really start to do that until about
the start of 2023.

S2 (22:20):
What about as far as, um, the potential for what
you can do? Of course. Uh, here we are, 2025.
The the Paralympics in 2028 and then Brisbane in 2032.
What's the situation? Because of course it's not just a
matter of getting into the team, but the team has
to qualify for games as well, doesn't it?

S4 (22:39):
Yeah, absolutely. So I mean we're we're improving but we've
still got a long way to go. So qualification for.
Well presumably if the rules don't change 2022 is automatic
entry for the host country. But in saying that you
don't want to just turn up and just suck, do you?

S2 (22:53):
Well, no, I think you'd like to do well in
front of your home crowd.

S4 (22:57):
But outside of that 2028, for example, to qualify, there's
a few different avenues. One, you have finished top tier
world championships, which is about as high as it sounds. Um,
you also could win the, um, uh, interleague games, which
is not the World championships. It's basically the basically, it's
a best out of whoever didn't qualify.

S2 (23:13):
Okay.

S4 (23:15):
Yeah. Usually the teams there are pretty good to just
it's not quite as difficult as winning the World Championships,
but it's not far off. And then the final way
to qualify outside of the host nation is if you
win your, um, regional championships. Each regional championship winner also
goes through.

S2 (23:29):
Yeah. So a little bit like, uh, you know, football, FIFA,
football World Cup guys, uh, as I say, um, what
about as far as, um, the Australian men's team? I mean,
we're kind of at a bit of a disadvantage, aren't we?
Because a lot of the European and other countries, even
in Asia, they don't have to travel as far and
they get more regular international competition. It makes it pretty

(23:51):
hard for us Aussies, doesn't it?

S4 (23:52):
It definitely it definitely adds a bit of definitely adds
some difficulty, which some other countries don't have to deal with.
It's just one of those things. It's kind of like
you've just got to kind of put up with it
and do the best you can. At times I think
it's a bit frustrating at times, that's for sure, but
there's not really a lot we can do about some
of those things, fortunately.

S2 (24:06):
What about the team itself then? Uh, now I know
recently went away, didn't it, to to Europe, I think.

S4 (24:12):
Yeah. Europe in the start of April.

S2 (24:13):
Were you in that team?

S4 (24:14):
Yeah, I was.

S2 (24:15):
Because I know we spoke to, uh, Daniel Pritchard, who, uh,
I think that you had some good results, didn't you?

S4 (24:20):
Yeah, we did, we were expecting. So we went to
the Berlin Nations Cup first and we got bronze, which
we were not expecting. And then to the I can't
remember what the official name of it is, but we
went to Trakai in Lithuania and the competition there, we
won bronze as well.

S2 (24:34):
Yeah. I think you beat one of the top teams
on the way through, didn't you?

S4 (24:37):
Yeah, well, so I'll give you a quick rundown. So
basically what happened is in Berlin, we lost our first
two games, but lost our first game to Japan, 12 five.
And then we lost to Finland four three on the
first day. And so the way it worked is there
were four pools of four. You had to finish at
the top two of your pool. So we were oh
and two from three games, pool stages. So it wasn't
looking good. And then on the morning of the second

(24:58):
day we beat Portugal seven two. And basically we snuck
into second place on goal difference just behind behind Japan.
So with one win and two losses, which second through
fourth all had. And then of course we ended up
having to play Brazil in the quarterfinal, which I mean,
we would not expect him to win that Brazil. They're
currently ranked number one in the world. And they finished.
They won bronze in Paris. They've also won the last

(25:20):
three World championships. So basically they're pretty damn good.

S2 (25:23):
And we beat them.

S4 (25:23):
We did. We beat them seven six. It helped. They
threw like seven penalties. But a win's a win.

S2 (25:29):
Look at the scoreboard at the end.

S4 (25:31):
I say we were not expecting that. We almost there
was a bit of a hiccup near the end when
we let three goals in a row with a few
minutes left, but we managed to hold on for the
last few minutes.

S2 (25:38):
Okay, well, those those close finishes are probably the best
ones to play in, aren't they? How's that for a
great finish? Yeah.

S4 (25:44):
Then in the semi-final we played Japan and we lost
in golden goal, which basically scores were level at the
end and they scored the first goal, which has been frustrating.
But uh, almost won that game. And then we won
the bronze medal match against Sweden seven four.

S2 (25:55):
So definitely something to build on.

S4 (25:58):
Yeah. Pretty much.

S2 (25:59):
Now as you mentioned, you're at uni. What are you
doing and what has made you choose that particular line of, uh, choice?

S4 (26:07):
Well, at the moment I'm doing a Bachelor of Arts
major in creative writing. I mean, I'm not 100% sure
what I want to do, but I do enjoy creative writing.
And I like pick the Bachelor of Arts because it's
a bit more flexible. So I'm like, I'm not 100%
sure what I'm doing so I can, you know, pick
and choose a little bit that makes sense.

S2 (26:21):
Yeah. So you want to be maybe a write a
novel or a bestseller or something like that?

S4 (26:26):
I don't know, something like that. I'm also a minoring
in psychology, so I'm also looking at that path a
little bit.

S2 (26:31):
So that might help with your sport or that might
help you with the rest of your teammates as well.

S4 (26:36):
Something like that. So yeah, just still kind of work
out exactly what I want to do. But that's the
sort of thing I'm doing at uni.

S2 (26:41):
Well, you went to SAS, as you said. Now you're
at uni. What about in terms of, uh, the technology
you use? Are you a pro user?

S4 (26:48):
Uh, yeah, I use pro, so I'll use a use
a brow note when I write things.

S2 (26:51):
Generally the humanware.

S4 (26:53):
One, uh, the new one out touch somebody.

S2 (26:58):
Else, I think.

S4 (26:59):
Yeah, I can't remember. I remember the old one, but
I can't remember, I forget.

S2 (27:03):
And what about in terms of. Because one of the
things that people have said over the years, I think
it's improved now, is that the kind of timeliness to
study material. It used to be really hard, you know,
by the time you got stuff in, for half the
year was over. I guess now with a lot of
it being online, that timeliness is a lot better.

S4 (27:20):
Yeah, with it being online, it's a lot easier nowadays.
Like most things don't need much adaptation. And the things
that do, it's generally pretty quick because it's online. You
can ask for extra time for certain quizzes or for
like 1 or 2 things to be adapted, but for
the most part it's pretty good because it's yeah, it's
online now.

S2 (27:34):
And what about getting about you? Have you got a
guide dog or.

S4 (27:37):
No, I don't I haven't got a dog. Um, I'm
slowly getting there.

S2 (27:41):
There you go. Because it's a big, big place and
lots of people. It's a bit different necessity as I.

S4 (27:47):
Oh, yeah.

S2 (27:47):
Very different.

S4 (27:49):
I had I had a little bit of help from
one of my classmates who had this, um, couple of
same classes, which was helpful. And then I had mum
and dad helped me a little bit for the for
the beginning, just getting to and from when I still
had no idea what I was doing. But then yeah,
just slowly starting to work out where, where things are.

S2 (28:05):
So you're long, long canyon. Yeah. You're a lung cancer.

S4 (28:09):
Yeah. Relatively. So it's okay.

S2 (28:13):
Okay. Well, um, you you were diagnosed with retinoblastoma at
a young age?

S4 (28:18):
Yeah, 18 months or so, I think.

S2 (28:21):
I don't suppose you remember much about that, but I guess.

S4 (28:23):
Not a thing.

S2 (28:24):
Yeah. And what about now in terms of your health
and so on? Because, you know, that's that's a form
of cancer, isn't it?

S4 (28:30):
Oh, he's fine nowadays. Too exciting to report there.

S2 (28:32):
Okay. Does the fact that you keep pretty fit help
as well do you think?

S4 (28:36):
Yeah, it definitely does.

S2 (28:37):
Well, what about as far as, um, your, uh, your
study and the the goalball kind of, you know, balancing
it out. Does does it help each other to, you know,
not not be focused on one thing all the time?

S4 (28:49):
Yeah. You know, I, I think I mean, I found
that definitely helps to have things to do. So you
don't do nothing. I mean, if I'm being honest when
it comes to study, being smart about my study habits
is not really a thing for me. But yeah, you
work it out at the last minute. I wouldn't recommend
that approach, but I'm also aware that anyone who needs
that recommendation, who is not going to listen to me.
So I certainly don't listen to myself.

S2 (29:09):
Are you naturally good though, like, you know, do you
pick up things pretty quickly? Got a good memory. You know,
you take things in?

S4 (29:16):
Well, I'm reasonably good at the academic stuff so I
can get away with it a bit.

S2 (29:20):
What did you do? Um. Your high school dead sassy early.
Where did you do?

S4 (29:25):
Um, so I went to Southern Christian College, which is
like in Morphett Vale.

S2 (29:29):
Okay, so that's kind of, um, mainstream, obviously.

S4 (29:32):
Yeah. Private school, not particularly large school.

S2 (29:34):
So was that a good thing?

S4 (29:36):
Yeah, I think so.

S2 (29:37):
And what what sort of marks did you get in
year 12? So to do, uh, arts and minoring in psychology,
you must have got some reasonable marks. Were you pleased
with how you went?

S4 (29:46):
Uh. Good enough. I have got, like, B's, and I'm honestly,
for the most part, no.

S2 (29:52):
Yeah, I think a bit.

S4 (29:53):
So that is what I got.

S2 (29:56):
Well, I mean, I'm doing reasonably well. It probably was
a bit better than just reasonably.

S4 (29:59):
Well, I could have done better, but I kind of
went for a good enough is good enough approach.

S2 (30:04):
All right. We got to do what you're doing. And
what about now then? So, um, what's coming up goalball wise?
Because I guess, uh, you know, these international competitions don't
happen very often. What do you do sort of week
to week, then.

S4 (30:15):
Week to week. I generally have 2 or 3 training
sessions to at the moment we're looking for a third,
probably trying to sort out an extra haul, but other
than that, four gym sessions a week for the gym
stuff and then two regularly sessions then yeah, about that,
that's week to week. And then probably every 6 to
8 weeks. We have a global camp in Melbourne over
the weekend for the men's program.

S2 (30:33):
Can I be personal? Do you fund that yourself?

S4 (30:35):
Yeah, mostly.

S2 (30:36):
Wow. That's a good commitment.

S4 (30:38):
There's we have got a certain amount of funding through. Yeah, yeah.
So it's one of those things. Of course I've forgotten
the gold. We've got a certain amount of funding through
that for the men's program as well as the women's
program for global, which has definitely helped. So it's cut
the cost a little bit, but still like probably about
halved or a little bit more. The cost to go
to Europe but still quite expensive to go to Europe
for example. So. Well, less expensive, but still paying quite

(30:58):
a lot. You still have to pay decent time to
go to each camp.

S2 (31:00):
So I've seen a few media releases over the last
few months from both state and federal governments talking about
putting money into elite sport, you know, preparing for the Paralympics, uh,
both in 2028 2032. But I guess there's a lot
of sports with their kind of handouts. That's probably. Yeah.

S4 (31:19):
It's definitely happening. It's just it doesn't make you don't
have to pay anything, I'd say.

S2 (31:23):
Well, congratulations on your scholarship. You'll be okay for next
three years. Yeah, I'll be okay anyway.

S4 (31:28):
It definitely helps.

S2 (31:29):
I'm so glad to talk to you. Congratulations again. And, um,
I look forward to following your progress. Thank you. That's awesome.
He's a member of the Australian men's Melbourne Storm, the
men's goalball team. And also winning that scholarship from the
AIS and also for fitness and sport.

S5 (31:48):
Hi. I'm Ben Choi, Australia's chef de mission for the
2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Cortina. And you're listening to
leisure link with Peter Greco on the Vision Australia radio network.

S2 (31:59):
Or really important rally is happening on Saturday the 28th
of June. Let's chat a bit about it with the
CEO for the Disability Resource Centre in Victoria. And he's
got Ali. Thanks for your time.

S6 (32:10):
Hello, Peter. Thank you for having me.

S2 (32:12):
Now you're going to be celebrating a rather unhappy anniversary,
I believe, on the 28th of June.

S6 (32:17):
That's absolutely right. So this is about commemorating two years
of government inaction regarding the accessible tram stops along Sydney Road.
So there's a very, very long strip of busy intersections
and living areas. It's a stretch from Brunswick to Coburg,
north of 5.5km stretch, where there are no accessible tram stops.

(32:41):
So you can get on, but you can't get off
if you need any kind of accessibility to get on
and off. And that's what we're concerned about. And we
we feel that this ignoring these this pressing issue has
been going on too long.

S2 (32:56):
Well what's their answer or why are they being so obstinate?

S6 (33:00):
I think the issue is we're all very aware that
the government is under enormous pressure to cut costs at
this time. But the problem is that there is a
lot of investment in road infrastructure, and there's a lot
of investment in the Sky rail. And what not being
invested in is the upkeep and the the increasing development

(33:22):
of flexibility in our existing public transport. So, for instance,
they'll soon be building the new skyrail, which means that
the upfield train line will be closed for 18 months.
And that's the only accessible form of public transport in
that area. So for that whole time, there will be
no ability to get around unless you're a driver, which

(33:45):
most of our community is not.

S2 (33:47):
Now, of course, you've got the meeting coming up or
the rally coming up on the 28th. I'm sure you've
been in touch with the government and the relevant ministers.
What's their response to all this?

S6 (33:56):
We are having radio silence, unfortunately. They are simply not
engaging with the issue. We're feeling that we are. Our
needs are being ignored. And this has been going on
for a very, very long time now. And Premier Fallon
knows that she's been Minister of Public Transport, she's been
Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. She knows the issues and

(34:17):
responsibilities of the government. The responsibility was to make sure
all the tram infrastructure was fully accessible by the end
of 2022, so that sailed past long into the distance,
and there's still no commitment to get on with this work.

S2 (34:31):
What about in terms of, um, the opposition? Uh, I mean,
I know, you know, that's probably next year before your election,
but have you have a bit more empathy there?

S6 (34:41):
Well, we do have very good relationships in opposition. It's true.
And so it's very important that our current government gets
onside with this need because we constitute a sizeable electorate.
And it's not appropriate for any of the electorate to
be ignored at this important time. So, yes, the Liberal

(35:02):
Party have been very responsive to our callings, and we
do have conversations about about our transport needs as well
as other disability issues. So, um, we really think that
it's time that the Labour, our Victorian Labour government was
more responsive.

S2 (35:16):
To what happens on the 28th. Ali.

S6 (35:18):
Okay. So on the 28th of June, 11:00, there'll be
a rally starting outside Coburg Library, and that's in Coburg Mall. And, um,
people will be gathering. There'll be speeches and then there'll
be a stroll up the road. It's usually really well attended,
boisterous and fun. And so if you care about the neighbourhood,
it's a wonderful thing to turn up to and support

(35:39):
the need for better infrastructure.

S2 (35:41):
Where can people find out more?

S6 (35:43):
So there's a Facebook page about the accessible, road accessible
Tram Stops campaign. You can also look in at Disability
Resources Center DRC, where you can sign up to be
part of the transport for all campaign. This is something
we've been working on for some years now because we
believe public services should be safe and accessible for everyone,

(36:07):
and everyone deserves equal access to community and to connection.

S2 (36:12):
We might keep in touch with you on this and
see what happens after Saturday the 28th.

S6 (36:16):
That would be wonderful. Yes, please. We'd love to report that.
Hopefully we'll have some positive news with some true engagement
from the government by then.

S2 (36:23):
Give them a little bit in the ribs. Thank you.

S6 (36:26):
He's hoping.

S2 (36:27):
All right. That's all he's got there. That's a pretty
serious situation, isn't it? Uh, Ali is the CEO for
the disability resource sector in Victoria. We'll put those details
up at our show notes at Sunday, the 28th of
June at 11:00. As I mentioned, we'll put those details
up and they'll show. You're in elite company listening to

(36:48):
Leslie here on Vision Australia Radio, VA radio, digital VA
radio and through the TuneIn radio app. Our resident counselor

(37:12):
is Pam Mitchell. Pam joins us at this time the
third week of each month. Pam, welcome. Good to have
you back with us.

S7 (37:18):
Oh, lovely to be back. It's always my favorite time
of the year.

S2 (37:23):
Now, Pam, a fan of yours and David's is sent
through a request for you to talk about. So we
thought this is a good idea. We won't mention the
person's name just because of confidentiality, but yeah, would you
like to take it away?

S7 (37:35):
That's a lovely thing. And I'm sure, Peter, that we'd
like both of us to acknowledge that people actually listen
and have requested some of that. So that's always lovely
and warm and heartfelt. So thank you. Look, we're talking
today about just what it used to be like in
hospital when you'd go in for something minimal or major.
And just the difference of those times with today, how

(37:58):
when you went into hospital, you basically pack your suitcase
because you think you'll be in there for a while.
And how quickly they chew you out. Now that you
can't even hardly unpack a toilet bag, it's quite different,
isn't it? It's quite bizarre. Just reflecting a little bit
like I can remember going into hospital about to have
my daughter delivered, who was running incredibly late. As in

(38:19):
three weeks late. They wouldn't let you do that these days.
But you planned to be in there for at least
eight days. Now you hear people that are either back
that afternoon or the next day, or the day after that.
It's an incredible turnaround. People that go in, you take
your lovely port power players that have ACLs and all
sorts of injuries. They chuck them out after these, what

(38:42):
we consider fairly major operations. Very quickly, they're immediately lined
up with OTS and physios and sports specialists and things
like that. But the recovery is done outside of the hospital.
So we're back home before we know it. And there's
some good positives about that. I would like to talk
about this morning, but there's also in some people's minds.

(39:04):
Is that too quick? Have we come out and not
looked after ourselves enough? Should we have been kept in
a few more days? And I guess that largely depends
on who's around for us to plan the best we
can for that. Sometimes we're chuffed off to rehab places
after surgery, so that's a bit of a buffer. But
for some people that's just not possible and we're back

(39:26):
home and sometimes that can feel quite isolating. So it
is all in the planning. It's all in. What do
we have in place to support us and recognising the
benefits now, the benefits of not sticking around hospital too
long as we have seen, like in the era of
Legionnaires disease, just through air conditioning systems, the infection prevalence

(39:50):
that can happen in hospital where the best cleanliness plans
are in place, but there is an And infection risk.
There are changeovers of staff, no matter how clean you've been.
You don't know where they come from, but disease travels.
And so we need to be conscious that if we
are able to come back home earlier than later, there

(40:12):
is a health benefit of that. But there's something more
than that. When we used to stay in hospital for
eight days, three weeks, six weeks for a hysterectomy, whatever
it was, and we kept there, something happens psychologically in
us that we actually feel protected. And then we come
out and we're exposed to the big bad world or
the big wide world, and we actually feel quite vulnerable.

(40:36):
And we realise that in some ways hospital has given
us a feeling of security. But when we get home
we realise that wasn't as secure. It's made us feel vulnerable,
it's made us feel dependent. And so the research that
goes into all this, getting people out of hospitals, not
just because they want to get rid of us, but
they realize that our ability to take care of ourselves

(40:59):
and to get on track sooner is often much more
positive than if they hang on to us longer. We
start to get back to those more normal routines that
we have to address. And so overall, it becomes a
more positive experience than being waylaid in hospital when we
become possibly too dependent. So that is a real plus

(41:22):
for it. However, when we get home, there's also the
other side that if we've had surgery and I had
a person in here the other day and I said,
you've got to remember, if you were an athlete and
you had an ACL at the moment, you'd have this
enormous cast on your leg, moon boot, whatever, strapping. And
everybody would be wanting to sign it and say, for you.

(41:46):
And oh, how did that happen? How long will you
be out? Oh, there you go into hospital and you
have something done that is possibly not something you can
put a plaster around, and people consider that your recovery
is almost instant when you come out, because you've got
nothing to remind you as well as that you start
believing in that same psyche and oh, I'm malingering here.

(42:07):
I need to be up. I need to polish the ceiling.
I can't just lie around. Well, in actual fact, we
need to give ourselves in our homes the benefit of
recognising that we have actually been involved in something that
has been quite significant. And it's like recognising in an
imaginary capacity that you are wearing an ACL cast on

(42:30):
your head or on your tummy, or wherever it is
in your chest or on your back, imagining that you
are walking around with that to remind you that I
can't just automatically do all these things, or I will
be back in hospital because whatever has been fixed has
just become unfixed. And that's not a very sensible way

(42:51):
to go. So there's pros and cons. As I'm saying here,
the benefit of being home, of course, is that we
can actually rehabilitate at our own steam we can possibly
create before we even go into hospital, lost assistance for people,
possibly to pop in who have said they want to
pop in, but having some control over that, that they

(43:13):
don't all come at the one moment or too soon
and it becomes overwhelming. Also, you know, if you're in
private health, you may be able to have some home
care packaging that helps you in that or NDIS if
you're in those schemes to be able to have extra
support work in those early days or through seniors programs,
to be able to come and have somebody help you

(43:34):
dust the ceiling, doctors that may be able to align
some sort of referral base so that you can receive
some extra care, like district nursing once a week or
every couple of days to help you shower. They're all
ways that actually improve our Self-esteem, our privacy, our sense
of coping mechanism. They're all good things to try to

(43:56):
arrange before not waiting until, but before you know you're
embarking on that experience. Families being involved, you know, possibly
bringing over the soup or the casserole that's going to
last for a couple of days. So still maintaining your
independency while you heal, but allowing them to do something

(44:17):
for you because you've probably largely done it for them.
I'm doing quite a bit at the moment. We all
have to do our professional development to maintain our accreditation,
and I'm doing quite a bit in neuroscience at the moment,
and what it's teaching me is that we often work
more from a remedial state of that which has passed
and led us to a terrible, unfortunate circumstance, and we

(44:40):
keep possibly remembering that a lot rather than more, being
involved in the preventative, which will lead to what is
better in the future for us. So if we remind
ourselves we don't have to go back and remind ourselves
so intentionally of those less than wonderful moments and think,
what can I do now that benefits my body most?

(45:02):
How can I make my body most comfortable today? What
is my body up to and telling me today? I
think I might be able to shower and sit in
a chair rather than in bed. I think I might
be able to go out and just tweak the basil
in the pot and give it a water, or bring
some insight to make the room smell beautiful. I think

(45:23):
I might be able to invite a friend today. I
could tune in to Peter Greco. That's something I didn't
think of yesterday. I have today I'm getting better so
that we actually spend more of our energy focusing on
where we're up to and what we can do better
with it, which actually returns the benefit for how we feel.

(45:44):
Next week, the week after, Laughter in the future to
feel like we've attracted that better state of well-being to
us than fearing what might what did happen, might come
back again. So we live in a more healthy consciousness
as we do that Covid has. And in my neuroscience
is reminding me, because the world, the way it changes,

(46:08):
the rising seas, the algae that we've experienced here, the
changes in temperature, climate change, whatever way you want to
look at that, there is some representation of change. The
unsettled world, the wars, the atrocities, the way our mind
works on all these things. Covid as well has been
very responsible for helping us to isolate. And when we isolate,

(46:31):
we engage with those things in our mind and they
do bring us down a lot. So it is about
being in touch with our feeling senses more today so
that we can actually live in that space, rather in
the space of being overwhelmed, being disastrous, conscious because we
can't prevent these things, but we can live in a

(46:53):
better state of being with looking after ourselves and paying
attention to what our needs are, more than what our
regrets are, or more than what our fears are. Nutrition
is an important thing. So you know, the meals in hospital,
pardon me, are not necessarily our favorite things to eat.
So being conscious of what our food for our particular

(47:15):
you know, it might be a culture issue. It might
be because you have certain preferences of foods or certain
allergies where, you know, you just don't know whether it's
safe to eat XYZ in hospital because you don't know
how it's been prepared. And some people are that sensitive
to food allergies, that's a really important thing. So when
we're home, we're more aware of how to look after

(47:36):
ourselves and make sure we get the nutrition that we need.
I have a little quote that I use used. And
just finishing up here today and it is today, is
the reflection I give to myself for tomorrow. Today is
the reflection I give myself for tomorrow. So if we

(47:57):
live better today in how we're caring for ourselves, that
is what we will find gifted to us tomorrow because
we've already begun to look after that better. So I
hope there's some useful little goodies in there. A delight.
And for that beautiful person that asked us how we
felt about this subject today, I hope there's something in

(48:17):
there for you too.

S2 (48:18):
Um, wonderful. Now, if people want to contact you, you
are a counselor by profession and you talked about professional development,
so that's very important. 0418 835 767.

S7 (48:29):
Lovely to be with you.

S2 (48:30):
We'll catch up again next month. Pam Mitchell there, our
resident counsellor.

S8 (48:35):
You're listening to Vision Australia Radio Adelaide. You can also
hear us at VA radio digital and online at RVA radio. Org.

S2 (48:44):
Well, late last year we caught up with one three
cabs and found out about their apps and the fact
that they were making catching a cab a little bit
more accessible and more friendly for people who might be
blind or have low vision of assistance dogs. There's new
news out. Let's chat about it with Chief Operating Officer
Olivia Barry live. Good to catch up with you again.

S9 (49:02):
Thanks for having us. Peter.

S2 (49:04):
And Hannah joins us as well. And lovely to meet
you and thank you for your time.

S10 (49:07):
Thank you Peter, happy to be here.

S2 (49:08):
Now tell us about some changes that have taken place.
So you've kind of gone above and beyond as far
as this time goes. You've improved your app this time around.

S9 (49:17):
So Peter, this time we've really taken a more holistic approach,
I think, and making our drivers more accountable through the
use of better technology, better dispatching technology. And Anna, who
can take you through what's happening in her call center.
She runs all our call centers around the country, has
more eyes if you like, on these jobs. So we're

(49:39):
watching them as they move from being made as a
booking into a car to do more to ensure they're
picked up. And if they're not picked up, then we
are following through very quickly with that driver to ensure
they are reprimanded.

S2 (49:55):
And then if we go back one step, you've actually
also improved your training of drivers to make them a
more aware and then be kind of having to answer
some questions before kind of giving the all clear.

S10 (50:06):
That's true. We now have a dedicated training module in
our driver induction training. And we're also preparing training refreshers
drivers who have been with us for a long time
as well. There's dedicated training module educators, drivers on the
importance and the necessity of assistance animals, how well they're trained,
and also the importance of servicing guide dog owners and

(50:28):
assistance dog owners. Yes. At the end of that training module,
there is a compulsory set of questions that that drivers
must answer.

S2 (50:36):
Otherwise they don't get through.

S10 (50:37):
Otherwise they don't get through.

S2 (50:39):
Now, also, they're made aware of their legal rights or
their legal responsibilities too.

S10 (50:44):
That's right. Yes. All of that is a part of
the training module, which is also focusing on the language
that we use for drivers. We focus on real world
scenarios and situations to make sure that we alleviate any
and all concerns that drivers must have. We also cover
things like allergies and religious reasons, which are not considered

(51:04):
as good excuses or good reasons to refuse service.

S2 (51:08):
Well, tell us a bit about what happens at the
call center then, because those at the call center also
get information about the client and maybe what is or
isn't happening.

S10 (51:16):
Yeah, absolutely. So in the contact center, it all starts
with a call. And we have an automated IVR system
which responds to all calls first. This system recognizes if
a caller mentions an assistance dog and it will treat
the call accordingly. It means that such a booking will
receive greater priority in our dispatch system, and different rules

(51:38):
will apply to it automatically. If the caller gets to
a human operator or operators are trained to assist people
who are owners of assistance animals, and as such, the
human contact centre agent will also prioritize such bookings. Another
part of it is when the booking reaches our dispatch system.
There is a human dispatcher who monitors all jobs that

(52:01):
have not been fulfilled or not been matched with a car.
So all these dispatchers are trained to treat trips with
assistance animals as top priority.

S2 (52:10):
So Olivia, this is kind of Australia wide. And is
this actually happening now or about to happen?

S9 (52:15):
No, this is in play and it's national for all
of our bookings. And whether it's coming through the app
or the web or a phone call, and the passenger
offers the information to us, they are travelling with a
guide dog or an assistance dog. Then the way Anna's
described how the booking will be treated, that's how it
will happen all across the country.

S2 (52:36):
I know it's only been in a short time, but
any idea of how it's been received from both parties,
both the drivers and of course, the clients.

S10 (52:43):
Well, through the nature of our business, it's very rare
that a passenger will come back and tell us how
great of a job we're doing. We are looking at
the completion rates and they are going up. It is
too early to share these numbers, but we are seeing
an uplift already.

S2 (52:58):
Fantastic. Why has this happened? I mean, we spoke to
you late last year and I think, you know, fair
to say that there'd been a fair bit of angst
and dissatisfaction about some of the services that people who
might have assisted dogs were getting. Why has this happened,
particularly this latest update?

S9 (53:12):
We just needed to really draw a line in the sand, Peter,
around the zero tolerance space for drivers refusing these trips.
So we had to upgrade some of the technology in
order to fulfill our obligation with informing drivers. So we've
done that. And you know, as I mean, both Anna

(53:33):
and I are big advocates of making sure that the
business is supporting every person who wants to travel and
chooses a taxi so that they can travel with dignity.
And I guess, yeah, we've done a lot of work
in the past, but we really hadn't implemented all the
elements we needed to be able to ensure we were
in the situation where we can just literally say to

(53:54):
a driver, well, you've done the wrong thing and you're gone.
That's it. And we're there now and that feels good.

S2 (54:00):
Have you had much response from the drivers, either of you?

S9 (54:02):
I think look, good drivers love any action we take
to ensure a better quality of service. The great drivers
in our business, they applaud this kind of rule setting.
And you know, we hope that the ones that aren't
doing the right thing now have all the tools they
need to do the right thing and make better choices.

S2 (54:21):
So once we came to Australia wide, I believe. So
in terms of the training that is kind of standardized
as well through the different states and the training that
they go through.

S9 (54:32):
Yeah that's right. Peter. So all our driver training is
delivered nationally. And a lot of the basis for, you know,
the original training we've done, we've done that with guide
dogs to make sure we have best practice at the
heart of the way we're training drivers in terms of
dealing with these passengers and the way they handle their
assistance dogs or their guide dogs. And that's still at

(54:54):
the core of of the message we're trying to get across.

S2 (54:57):
Well, how important is that? Because I guess it's all
well and good for people like yourselves who've got the
best of intentions, obviously, but you can't be expected to
know everything or the right way, or what people prefer
or don't prefer. I guess apart from customer feedback. But
you've gone out and consulted with people that are working
in the area, people with lived experience.

S9 (55:15):
That's right. So we've been consulting with Guide Dogs New
South Wales and Jennifer Moon for a long time. She's
been advising us over the years of that best practice,
and that could include the way a driver opens the
door for these passengers or, you know, does not try
and put the seat belt on and things like that
where the dog should sit. But equally, Anna's been doing

(55:37):
some amazing work with a taxi working group that has
people coming to that, who have that lived experience and
can give us the very valuable feedback. So she can
talk about that.

S10 (55:49):
Yes. We've conducted several consultation groups with people who are
themselves assistance dog owners. We've also worked with Denman as
live as mentioned, and also Assistance Dogs Australia have been
quite helpful in creating that training module that we discussed
earlier for our drivers what to do, what not to do,
what does good customer service looks like?

S2 (56:11):
Both of you. Just to clarify. So obviously if people
use the app, this kind of information is punched in,
if I can put it that way. Some people do
choose to ring for a cab. That's also going to
be accepting that kind of information or that'll be part
of the process as well.

S10 (56:25):
Yes, all that we ask is that the person calling
tells us that they're traveling with an assistance animal. This
is the only way for us to know that this
trip requires special attention. I wish we lived in the
world where we didn't need to know, and it would
just happen all by itself. However, we are here to
ensure accountability, and for that, we need to know that

(56:46):
you're travelling with an assistance animal. If you tell us,
we'll be able to do all of these things that
we mentioned before.

S2 (56:53):
Sometimes there's kind of a prior record of I cord from,
you know, number one, the King William Street, Adelaide, if
I could put it that way. And it's then registered
the fact that I had an assistance animal is that
kind of also the case in this situation? Or every
time I ring, regardless of if I'm at the same address,
I still have to mention it.

S10 (57:11):
It is up to you. So if you're talking to
a person, you can ask them, can you put this
onto my profile? The easiest way, however, to do that
is of course to do it in the app. There
is one toggle. You move it once, and then all
of the trips that you book with us from that
moment on will be marked as a trip with an
assistance dog.

S2 (57:29):
What about the app then? Has work gone into making
sure that's accessible as well? Some people are really clever
with technology. Others are perhaps not quite as good like me.
Hand up for sure. So is the app reasonably intuitive
and accessible? Have you gone through the processes there to
make it accessible as well?

S9 (57:45):
We have Peter, and we know that the feedback we
have received about the app is that it works very
well with voice recognition, and I think it is really
the choice for a lot of people who are vision
impaired or blind, because it does work very well on
phones that are responsive in that way.

S2 (58:02):
Without wishing to get too much off the topic, so
would it be fair to say that a bit of
AI has been used, or AI has been beneficial in
kind of making this better than it might have been, say,
5 or 10 years ago?

S9 (58:12):
I think we're taking the right steps with AI as
we introduce that into the business. And I think, you know,
you could say that some of the call centre is
is using AI and the app uses it in terms
of dispatching cars, but really, that part of it where
it interacts on voice is about functionality and making sure
that it isn't too complex in that it's not overwhelmed

(58:35):
with information to communicate.

S2 (58:37):
That if things don't go the way I'd like. Uh,
what about in terms of complaints? I believe there's a
maybe a better way for you as a contact center
to handle complaints or have complaints registered?

S10 (58:48):
Yes. So anyone can lodge a complaint with one three
cups through various channels. You can do this on our website, Cosmo.
You can also call our main number and the person
will instruct you to lodge a complaint. You can also
lodge a complaint directly from the app. There is a
point in the menu where you can lodge a complaint

(59:08):
right there. And lastly, you can send us an email.
So the email address is available on our website as well.
So various ways of submitting a complaint. We also have
a phone line that's dedicated to complaints. It has limited
times throughout the week, but that's a dedicated line for
specifically for complaints, where trained staff will be able to

(59:30):
respond to you right then and there.

S2 (59:32):
What happens if I haven't had a good experience and
I complain? Does that kind of always get a bit
of priority in terms of the attention?

S10 (59:38):
That's an excellent question. So all of our complaints are
responded within 48 business hours. When I say responded, it
means that a human being will review your complaint and
will attempt to resolve it. So that happens within 48
business hours. At the same time, any complaints mentioning assistance
animals or guide dogs or any other terms on the

(59:58):
same topic? These complaints get auto prioritized. It means that
they will be treated and responded much faster.

S2 (01:00:06):
Well, it sounds like a very positive move. I think
I spoke to you about six months ago live. So
maybe in six months time if we catch up again
and see how it's all going, because these things sometimes
take a bit of time to roll out and I
guess to kind of flow through to everyone that's using
it to to get a bit of an idea of that,
the changes and the in the benefits, so we might
have to re-engage again in six months time or something
like that.

S9 (01:00:26):
That's great Peter. And look, I think coming on your
radio show and being able to reach the audience that
this is applicable for is really important to us because
we're making the changes. Really, we want to be able
to be very pragmatic with them and have better results
for the passengers who need better results and can travel,
you know, and feel very respected when they do that

(01:00:47):
every time. And that's our goal. And so we absolutely
welcome the feedback, and we thank you for helping get
our message out there.

S2 (01:00:55):
We appreciate you speaking to us about attitude. Who's in
charge of the contact centre at one three Cabs and
also their chief operating officer live Barry. And a new,
updated and better way to contact and also to communicate
with their clients. So if you use one three cabs
check it out. Tell us what you think and get
in touch with them. If you're not happy and get
in touch with us if you are happy so we

(01:01:15):
can let the world know.

S11 (01:01:21):
I'm Cassie Mason, the director of the office for aging
well in SA health, and you can join me on
leisure link on the Vision Australia radio network.

S12 (01:01:29):
Still feed me when I'm 64.

S2 (01:01:33):
Well, some really interesting research by Specsavers and the condition
that maybe people might have but not be aware of it.
Let's speak to from Specsavers, one of their directors, Krishna Patel. Krishna,
thank you for your time. Really appreciate you speaking to us.

S13 (01:01:47):
Thank you for having me on.

S2 (01:01:49):
Now this is a bit of a concern, is it not?

S13 (01:01:51):
I'd say so. I mean, I would say with over
three quarters of Australians unaware of this condition, that's ultimately
going to affect most of us or all of us
at in our lifetime. Um, I think it's an important
topic of discussion. The condition that we're talking about today
is presbyopia.

S2 (01:02:09):
Yeah.

S13 (01:02:09):
Presbyopia is, um, it's a condition where your lens inside
the eye is a lens that helps us focus throughout
our life. And when we get to about 40. The
salaries in the AI just doesn't focus as well as
it used to be, so it starts to harden. And
so when we're looking at something much closer to us,
I like your phone or a book or, you know,

(01:02:30):
reading a newspaper, you'll find that you're focusing starts to
slow down and you start to struggle to see these
near objects. Some of the listeners might be able to
identify with that happening right now or having been through it.
But the surprising statistic is that 72% of Australians are
unaware of this condition.

S2 (01:02:48):
Do we kind of just put up with it? Is
that the issue?

S13 (01:02:51):
I think so. I mean, I think with technology, for example,
looking at your phone, you can always make things a
bit bigger. If you're looking at your computer screen, you
can always adjust the settings. So I think we can
put up with it to a certain extent, yes.

S2 (01:03:02):
What causes it apart from aging? Grishma.

S13 (01:03:04):
Well, with aging, this lens in the eye starts to
harden and it just means the lens can't adjust focus
as fast or it just doesn't adjust focus ultimately over
time so well. So it often leaves your distance vision
quite clear, so your distance vision is usually unaffected. If
you've had good distance vision and you're near, vision starts
to change. So ultimately it's a condition that occurs through

(01:03:25):
the passage of time.

S2 (01:03:27):
And what about in terms of diagnosing it diagnosing.

S13 (01:03:30):
So if you can identify any of these symptoms that
I've mentioned today that could be an indication that you
have myopia. Lots of other eye conditions can mimic these
symptoms too. So it's important to just figure out what's
going on by going to see one of your one
of our optometrists, or going to see your local optometrist

(01:03:50):
just to have an eye test to ensure that it's
just presbyopia, which can easily be managed rather than another
more serious eye condition.

S2 (01:03:57):
So it's kind of serious, but not serious. I mean,
it's not a glaucoma or it's not cataracts, which I
guess would be considered more serious.

S13 (01:04:04):
Absolutely. Those are those are the big conditions that you'd
need treatment for. And often they lead to visual loss
over a period of time, whereas presbyopia is easily managed,
usually with glasses, nowadays with contact lenses as well.

S2 (01:04:17):
So it's more a bit of a nuisance.

S13 (01:04:19):
I'd say so.

S2 (01:04:20):
Well, what about as far as the kind of test
to diagnose it? I mean, most optometrists would kind of, um,
you know, have that in their tool kit.

S13 (01:04:27):
Absolutely. If I can put it as common as myopia
or hyperopia. These are long sight, short sight. Astigmatism is
just another one of these refractive terms. It just means
that as part of your eye test, when the optometrist
is checking what you can see at far distances, when
you're looking at that chart, they will also be checking
to see if you can read a chart close to you.

(01:04:50):
And with the eye testing that's done, it's easily detected.

S2 (01:04:54):
I know over the years I've done interviews with people
who talk about the fact that because we are sort of, um,
you know, locked into our screens and our phones, etc.,
we've almost got that sort of close vision or that
thing that we're watching at close range, and that can
not sort of be the best thing for us, I guess,
you know, 50, maybe 100 years ago, we didn't do

(01:05:15):
that sort of thing as humans, you know?

S13 (01:05:18):
This is such an important piece. I'd love to expand
on this because, Peter, I have a lot of patients
that say, well, you know, my grandmother never wore glasses
her whole life. She she lived till 100, and she
never needed glasses. And and actually, I think there's a
there's a point to make here because over time, your
vision can change in many different ways. And and often
if you're not reading for long periods, if you're not

(01:05:38):
doing anything that challenges that focus, you're not staring at screens.
Often you won't realize that you're having these problems or
you put up with it. And nowadays, we are spending
a lot more time looking at screens and reading our phone.
And this is not what's causing the damage. This is
just exacerbating the symptoms. And it's causing us to notice
these symptoms earlier.

S2 (01:05:56):
Because we're doing it from a young age, aren't we?
I mean, you know, kids in class and onwards, you know,
once you leave school or university, you're in a job
and probably, you know, with a computer in front of
you or, or more than one screen in front of you.

S13 (01:06:08):
I'd say so. And not just the computer, I think
with leisure as well. I mean, you sit on a
train and you'll see how many people are looking at
their phones, and I think it's just lifestyle these days.
So I ultimately we are exposed to a lot of
close range and that can cause other vision symptoms eye
muscle disorders, eye, um, myopia, which is a condition that's

(01:06:30):
affecting children more often now in the developed world than
any other generation, which is shortsightedness. And that's been linked
to excessive time looking at things close in the past.
But nowadays, with devices and technology and reading and the
pressures of education, we're starting to see an increase in
children developing myopia. That's the other end of the spectrum.

(01:06:52):
The side that we're talking about here today, presbyopia affects
the working age population and into your older retirement years.
So I think if you are spending a lot of
time looking at documents, reading your phone, looking at a
computer screen, and you've noticed that your vision is not
up to scratch or it's slowing you down. You're getting headaches, potentially.

(01:07:14):
You're squinting to see. You're struggling to readjust your focus
from your screen, to see which train or bus you're catching.
At the end of the day, these are all early
signs that maybe it's presbyopia that's occurring, and if it's
managed early, you can live a very comfortable life and
work without having too much difficulty with the use of
glasses and contact lenses.

S14 (01:07:35):
I showed this a little bit tongue in cheek.

S2 (01:07:37):
Um, you know, 40 isn't that old, is it?

S13 (01:07:39):
It isn't. I'd say 40 isn't old at all. Life
just begins.

S2 (01:07:43):
Well, but I mean, I guess that's the time when
you've got to have your guard up as well.

S13 (01:07:47):
Yes, that's right. This is not only presbyopia, but a
lot of eye conditions are a bit more prevalent after
the age of 40. So we do like to start
screening for things like glaucoma from the age of 40.
So don't wait for a vision symptom. If you're around
that age Mark and you haven't had an eye test,

(01:08:07):
I think it's a good idea just to get some
baseline measurements done.

S2 (01:08:10):
Yeah, well, I guess you can then kind of map
it or track it in years to come. You talked about,
you know, a patient coming along and saying, my grandmother
never wore glasses. Is there any sort of family history
with this? Anyway.

S13 (01:08:23):
It's a condition of aging. So I think where you
may have family members that have not needed glasses to read,
they may have had poor distance vision. So there are
other things that could have occurred in the family. And
family history has a big part to play with eye
conditions too. Not necessarily presbyopia, but other eye conditions for sure.

S2 (01:08:43):
What about some of the, um, you know, lifestyle factors,
you know, eating well and that sort of stuff? Can
that play a role? Or, you know, you got to
maybe stop having birthdays?

S13 (01:08:54):
No. Lifestyle factors absolutely can play a role. So we
know that other things that can cause this lens to,
to age prematurely, um, ultimately to become cataract are lifestyle
factors such as smoking, spending a lot of time in
the sun without sunglasses on. The incidence of diabetes can
increase the risk of developing cataracts early as well. Certain

(01:09:17):
medications can, too, so sometimes the lens starts to age
earlier because of external influences. And and often a lot
of these influences of, say, sun exposure have been done
throughout childhood years. So it might be too late to
reverse all of that. But it's a really good opportunity
to speak to an optometrist when you're having your eye

(01:09:37):
test and actually think about which other proactive measures you
can take to increase this lens longevity.

S2 (01:09:45):
I noticed in the information you sent through that, um,
it impacts or affects people driving at night.

S13 (01:09:51):
Well, in a way, the distance vision remains good if
you're presbyopic if you have problems with vision, distance vision
isn't so affected. It's looking down at the dash. Anyone
that can relate to this could see for miles, but
when you look at your dash Are you looking at
your GPS and it takes a while to adjust focus
and then adjust back to see the road ahead of you.
That that's slowing down of your focusing can cause some

(01:10:15):
some problems with driving. Being able to make decisions very
quickly when you're moving so fast so it can affect
your driving. Because of the way that we're using our
eyes at changing focus from far to close, and vice versa.

S2 (01:10:27):
Because I'm sure we all know of people that say, well,
I still drive, but I don't drive at night.

S13 (01:10:32):
Yes, and this is the thing with driving at night.
If there is any underlying vision disorder astigmatism, short sight presbyopia,
it's exacerbated in low light. So driving at night is
one of those times where people notice that their vision
isn't up to scratch. Or perhaps reading a menu in
a dimly lit restaurant. That's where a lot of people

(01:10:52):
notice that they can't see so well. So if low
light exacerbates your vision symptoms, it's another opportunity to to
discuss that with your optometrist and see if you can
be helped.

S2 (01:11:03):
You talked about kind of tracking it, you know, getting
a baseline reading if you like and then tracking it.
I guess similarly, if you keep seeing the same assumptions,
it's a good idea as well.

S13 (01:11:11):
It really is helpful because the technology that we use,
for example, at Specsavers, which is Oct, a hospital grade technology,
which essentially is a retina scan and it's a 3D
retina scan, and the information that we can gather from
that is really useful when we're tracking for change over time.
So if you've got continuity with your optometrist, there should

(01:11:31):
be able to help you understand how your eye's ageing,
if you will. And it's really useful to to pick
up early stages of glaucoma, early stages, macular degeneration. And
this is where we can really help to, I guess,
offer the right advice, but also refer people in a
timely fashion to to ophthalmologists if they need that extra care.

S2 (01:11:53):
That early intervention is so important. I guess people can
find out more from their local optometrist. I'm thinking you're
probably going to say, well, if there's If there's a
Specsavers nearby, check them out.

S13 (01:12:03):
Absolutely.

S2 (01:12:04):
All right. We'll put the details up on our show
notes@specsavers.com is the website. I'd love to talk to you.
It's an important message. Thank you for spending some time
with us.

S13 (01:12:14):
Thank you so much, Peter.

S2 (01:12:15):
That's the Greeshma Patel there who's with Specsavers talking about presbyopia.
I think we should all be aware of. And maybe
if you haven't been to the optometrist a little while,
maybe get yourself off in the next few days.

S15 (01:12:30):
On the Vision Australia network through your favorite podcast service
on 1190 7 a.m. in Adelaide. You're listening to leisurely.

S2 (01:12:42):
Enjoy catching up with Mahesh from Pacific Vision over the
last couple of years or more maybe, uh, Mahesh has
just been overseas. Let's see what he saw. Man, it's
great to catch up again. Thanks for speaking to us.

S16 (01:12:53):
Hi, Peter. Nice to talk to you again. Uh, yes. Uh,
just been to the side city in Frankfurt and they
had an amazing experience. This was my first time, so
it was good too. It's quite big and quite busy,
so it's a great experience actually.

S2 (01:13:09):
What attracted your attention and what might you be bringing
to Australia?

S16 (01:13:13):
There were lots and lots of things actually, but we
have some, uh, suppliers who have been we have been
working with for a very long time, and specifically Rehaan Electronics.
They are coming out with something new and innovative. Uh,
they're coming with, with some handheld magnifiers, which are, uh, for, uh,
you know, I don't know, they're it's something amazing they're

(01:13:35):
coming up with around electronic magnifiers. So there is something
to look forward to. They're very easy to use. Uh,
very has, uh, user friendly. So that is something I
am also looking forward to. And uh, will be hopefully
by in a couple of months maximum. We should have
them on our, uh, menu. Yeah.

S2 (01:13:54):
All right. Well, what's the kind of theory or what's
the thought behind the round ones? What? What makes them
a bit different? From their point of view, do they
kind of explain that?

S16 (01:14:03):
I think the idea is coming from the basic, you know,
the optical magnifiers, people are used to the optical magnifiers,
you know, holding them in their hand and the round ones.
That's the kind of thought they have in mind. Everybody,
you know, that's that's what I could understand, you know,
by bringing that thing, you know, people will still feel,
you know, they're using a round magnifier and but it does.

(01:14:24):
It has got the electronic capability. So you can zoom in,
zoom out and very basic, you know, nothing else. No
saving pictures or, you know, anything. Just very basic. Uh,
take it out, use it. And, uh, there you go.

S2 (01:14:37):
Does that kind of mean the price is a bit more, uh,
sort of affordable as well? In a way.

S16 (01:14:41):
Yes. Yes, I think that's that's a very, very important, uh,
part of it. The price will be quite significantly low
compared to the rectangular ones. So that is that is
something to look forward to as well. I haven't got
the price yet, so I'll let you know once. As
soon as I get the information.

S2 (01:15:00):
I will press you too much on that. What else?
What sort of other things are kind of, uh, grabbing
people's attention? Or I guess it's more for exhibitors rather
than consumers or other consumers there as well.

S16 (01:15:12):
There are a lot of consumers. There are people who
are buying stuff from the shelf. Uh, there is, uh,
something uh, to do with the mobility. You know, there's
a navigating device, uh, which guides you to, you know, uh,
through the, through the app and, uh, it guides you,
you know, going around places. So that is also another

(01:15:34):
thing which caught my attention. And, uh, I am talking
to those people, so I'll, I'll give you more details as,
as soon as I talk to them. And, uh, you know,
we are, we are into some kind of, uh, collaboration.

S2 (01:15:48):
So for such series just for equipment or devices, for
people who are blind or low vision, or does it
have wider applications than that?

S16 (01:15:56):
Oh, that's a huge. And it's more to do with the,
I would say, vision. Uh, and a bit of, uh, disability. Yeah.
So definitely blindness and low vision was the main criteria.
But there are a few devices which can help people, uh,
help with this. You know, we those who are, uh,
you know, can't speak or, you know, speech, uh, devices, uh, wearables.

(01:16:20):
There were a lot of variables, actually, uh, those who
could identify colors and things like that. So there were
quite a mixed bunch. It's actually exhibited by the manufacturers.
So people all across the globe were there mostly from Europe.
So very, very interesting. Yes.

S2 (01:16:37):
What about from your point of view? I know you
said first time there. I guess you're trying to take
it all in and also trying to work out. Well,
I think this might be good for our potential clientele,
and this may be not so good that that must
be a bit of pressure on you there to kind of, uh,
decipher and, and, uh, I go through the all the
stuff to work out what is good and maybe what

(01:16:57):
isn't quite as necessary as might otherwise be the case.

S16 (01:17:00):
That was the that was the biggest challenge, actually. Yeah,
I you know, if I wish I could have brought
everything from there and, you know, given it to the
people here, but we are restricted because of the, you know,
the authorized dealerships and exclusive dealerships and all those things, uh,
doesn't allow us and especially, you know, the finances also

(01:17:20):
had to be looked into.

S2 (01:17:21):
So, yeah.

S16 (01:17:22):
There are, uh, yes, there's a lot actually there. And
it's quite overwhelming, you know, being the first time there,
it was a bit overwhelming. So I could, I could
only I could only absorb which, which was more relevant
to me than, uh, and everything else. Yes.

S2 (01:17:38):
We hear about the world being an aging population, if
you like. I guess that's part of their target as well.
The fact that there are more and more older people and,
you know, part of the thing of becoming older is
maybe your sight isn't as good as it used to be.
That kind of is a bit of a focus, pardon
the pun.

S16 (01:17:55):
Yes, absolutely. Uh, I could see lots and lots of
devices which were targeted towards the mobility part of people.
You know, people help them in going around and, uh,
you know, use the different canes were available with different features,
smart games where I could see some smart canes as
well for the blind. And, uh, so yes, I think

(01:18:19):
the that's the way it was, uh, you know, lots
of variables. I think that is also another, another reason
why wearables are getting very popular, because people don't have
to use their hands and, uh, with some gestures and
some speech commands, they, they, they can do the job.

S2 (01:18:37):
Seems to be something that is becoming more prominent as well. Uh,
as you say, using your voice to direct devices as
well for those either who are very lazy or perhaps who,
you know, uh, you know, find a little bit difficult
to use their the hands as well as they might
have once done with things like arthritis etc..

S16 (01:18:54):
Yes, yes. Absolutely. Absolutely. I think that's that's the idea
of getting these. And the most important thing is when
you're wearing something like a wearable assistive device, your hands
are free. Your hands are still free to do things,
holding things in your hand, looking at things or, you know, doing,
doing a daily task and still, you know, getting the
information you need. So it's quite a smart idea of, uh, exploring, uh,

(01:19:17):
the and with the I, it makes such a big difference.
It just takes to your next level.

S2 (01:19:24):
Yeah. How do you approach then when you come back
and you've got some ideas and some products that are
on the way, do you kind of target them to
clients that you already have or do you kind of
how do you put the word out there I guess
maybe newsletters, website, that sort of thing?

S16 (01:19:38):
Yes. Yes, definitely. As soon as we, you know, we
have the products in our hand, we will, uh, we
will put them on our website and we will, uh,
you know, through mediums like you will let the people
know that these things are available through social, social platforms.
All these where we, you know, we'll try and reach
as much people as I can. And through our regulars,

(01:19:59):
those who are on our, you know, list, we we
will send them the newsletter to know what what is available,
the new stuff.

S2 (01:20:07):
Yeah, I'll look forward to receiving that. I guess from
a personal point of view, Mahesh, it's a great chance
for you to do some networking and build up some
relationships for, for future, uh, activities, if you like, you know,
kind of, uh, some partnerships, some agreements that you can
now look forward to. You know, when some of these
companies bring out new things as well, give you, uh,
kind of be in on the ground floor?

S16 (01:20:28):
Absolutely. Peter, we are very open to, you know, any
kind of, uh, partnership with, uh, various, uh, people and
various platforms. We have been, you know, in working in
this industry for the last ten years. And we that's
what we encourage. Also, you know, more of the people
are aware the people more The trial out things you
know rather than you know straight away. Go and buy.

(01:20:50):
We always we are always encouraging people to try things before,
you know, taking the decision, final decision. So we make
sure that people these things goes to people. They try
it out, give their, you know, their feedbacks as well
as very valuable. So yes, that's that's the idea always been.
And we will make sure that this happens this time

(01:21:11):
as well.

S2 (01:21:12):
If we want to get in touch with you, what's
the best way to do that?

S16 (01:21:15):
Best way is please call us on one (300) 756-8849, or
you can directly call me on 0451 332 885. And you have
a website. Dub dub dub Pacific vision com.au. So all these, uh,
platforms available. So just get in touch or write us

(01:21:38):
an email at office at vision com.au. So we are
happy to answer any queries or take your calls.

S2 (01:21:46):
Mahesh. Always great to catch up, I love you. I
love your enthusiasm. We'll keep in touch and I'm sure
we'll speak about some of these new items as they
come to hand.

S16 (01:21:55):
Absolutely, Peter. It was always great talking to you. Thank
you very much for giving me the opportunity every time. And, uh,
looking forward to catching up with you in Adelaide.

S2 (01:22:04):
How do you do it? Because you're a nice guy, Mahesh.

S16 (01:22:06):
Thank you very much. I really appreciate your motivation. Yes.

S2 (01:22:11):
You take care. We'll speak soon.

S16 (01:22:12):
Thank you. Peter.

S2 (01:22:13):
That's very nice there from Pacific Vision. I saw those
details up with our show notes, but, uh, certainly, uh,
great to get a bit of a snapshot of what
Smart City was like in Europe.

S5 (01:22:22):
Yeah.

S2 (01:22:27):
A couple of quotes before we go. Angus has sent
a quote through. Angus says darkness cannot be driven out
by darkness, only by light. Hate cannot be driven out
by hate. Only by love. Of Angus. Thank you so
much for that. I think that's your first quote that
you've sent through Angus. So thank you for that. And

(01:22:49):
one from Moraca who one of our regular contributors, Moraca,
says a setback is a setup for a comeback. So
thanks to Moraca for sending that through. A couple of
birthdays before we go. Courtney McKeon having a birthday. Good idea.
Courtney does some great work with Fish Australia. Happy birthday
to you. And Joshua Warrior having a birthday. That's a

(01:23:11):
fabulous comedian. And there was also a pretty good footballer
for Port Adelaide before losing his sight. So happy birthday
to you, Joshua warrior. That's it for the program. Sam Rickard,
thanks so much for your help. Pat Green, thanks so
much for yours. Thanks to the team for helping us
put the program to air this afternoon, reminding you that

(01:23:31):
link is available on your favorite podcast platform. If you
like the show, please tell a friend or 2 or 3.
Always room for one more listener. Coming up very, very shortly.
Stay tuned to 1190 7 a.m. in Adelaide because Vicki
Cousins is here with Australian Geographic. All being well let's
look back at the same time next week. Be kind

(01:23:53):
to yourselves, be thoughtful and look out for others. On
Australia Radio and the Reading Radio Network this is leisurely.

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