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WOMAN:
NARRATOR: Young people with disability
should have the right to lead the life they want to
and have a choice of where they live.
As an ambassador for Building Better Lives,
27-year-old Anj Barker shares her story
and campaigns to help them from being forced into nursing homes.
At 16, a brutal assault by her ex-boyfriend
led to a traumatic brain injury.
Anj spent eight weeks in hospital,
four months in rehab and over two years in a nursing home
with people at least 50 years older than her.
There are about 3,500 people under 60 living in nursing homes in Australia.
82% never visit their friends.
13% hardly go outside.
Building Better Lives aims to raise awareness of the issue,
keep it on the political agenda
and raise funds to build flexible housing models.
Michelle spent over a year living in a nursing home.
As a Building Better Lives ambassador, she now shares her experience
to stop other people from having to go through what she did.
Three days after her 19th birthday, Michelle had an asthma attack
which left her brain starved of oxygen for 10 minutes.
She had to relearn to talk, walk, eat and function.
MICHELLE:
The Disability Discrimination Act
aims to ensure that people with disability have equal rights,
but in the case of Anj and Michelle, it just doesn't do enough.
Both believe with appropriate facilities
their recovery would have been quicker.
They want to ensure young people like them
have the options to rehabilitation, easier access to funding
and an alternative to nursing homes.
ANJ: