DYSLEXIA IS MY SUPERPOWER by Jackie Rankin

At 21 Wes Baker had the reading and writing age of someone much younger.

My dad was an academic. We travelled a lot so I was always between education systems. I thought that was why I struggled with writing and spelling.

I knew the answers, but putting what was in my head onto paper was almost impossible. My teachers said I just needed to catch up. I got to university, spurred on by my dad, but no one realised the real problem.

My handwriting and spelling were illegible. Lecturers would say they couldn’t mark what they couldn’t read. I was falling far short of grades I knew I was capable of achieving.

Friends suggested I get assessed for dyslexia. The results were shocking. My writing and spelling well below average for my age.

I was angry it hadn’t been picked up earlier, but now I knew why I was struggling and what I needed to do. I developed coping strategies, including improving my handwriting skills and spelling, so people could read my work.

I started a Masters at University of Liverpool. The lecturers assured me they wouldn’t be marking my handwriting or spelling, but I’d need to get to the point where they could actually read it!

Looking back I’d lived in something of a bubble. People in the science world are more interested in data analysis skills than written reports. My mistake was in thinking the rest of the world would be the same.

Wesam Baker, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Even working in the NHS people would criticise emails and joke about having ‘a dyslexic moment’. It made me determined to change things for other people in my position.

After a very positive experience at Liverpool Women’s Hospital I joined accountants Ernst and Young LLP. I was inspired by their championing of dyslexics.

My breakthrough moment came from a colleague from a company I was working with. As I apologised for spelling errors he said ‘I’m dyslexic too. It’s a gift. We can see things other people can’t. We can solve problems and unravel data. View it as your superpower.”

This was the first time I’d heard anyone talk about dyslexia as a positive thing. I began to think differently. Why do we focus on the negatives? Steven Spielberg, Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein are all dyslexic. Would they have been able to do what they did without their dyslexia?

I became passionate about helping other people to see their dyslexia as a strength. I wanted to work in the NHS and develop a workplace dyslexic network, but I was ready to wait for an organisation that would embrace it.

When I came to Mersey Care I knew this was the place. A culture where we ask not ‘who is to blame?’ but ‘how can we learn from this?’ and an emphasis on psychological safety, are not just words on a wall. The directors have embedded it into organisational culture.

We launched in 2019, backed by the British Dyslexic Association. One of our biggest achievements is working with Informatics Merseyside to make sure our IT systems support people. We are also reviewing and adapting our training programmes.

Employers are increasingly recognising the skills people with neurodiverse conditions bring. GCHQ is now advertising for dyslexics to join – there have been newspaper articles about dyslexic spies!

In the wider world stigma still exists. I’ve heard about people who found out in their 50s after years of struggling. I’d like our staff to go into schools and say ‘I’m a doctor and I have dyslexia’. We should give kids who are viewed as non achievers a belief that they can do whatever they want, if they get the right support – to use their superpower...”

• Wesam Baker is Director of Strategic Analytics, Economics and Population Health Management at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.

WHAT IS DYSLEXIA?

Dyslexia is a neurologicaldifference that can affect allaspects of someone’s life. Itruns in families and is a lifelongcondition.

There is a misconceptionthat dyslexia just affects the abilityto read and write. In fact it mayaffect areas such as coordination,organisation and memory. Find outmore from the British DyslexiaAssociation: bdadyslexia.uk

DON'T WAIT TO TELL SOMEONE

It's taken Cara Donnelli-Hunn 40 years to talk openly about her dyslexia.

Cara Donnelli-Hunn, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

Joel Goodman

Most of my friends don’t know, or my previous employers. I was too embarrassed to say.

I knew early on something was wrong. My teachers couldn’t read my writing and suggested I was tested. They were right.

My dyslexia shows in writing and verbally. When I write a birthday card I use ‘lost’ instead of ‘lots’ of love. Words can come out very differently to what’s in my head. I don’t know my left from my right so my husband and daughter have to check before we turn! We laugh about it, but the stigma is always there.

It’s easy to become insular. I flush visibly when I make a mistake. I’ll stay at the back of a group for fear I’ll be asked to speak and completely mess up. You imagine people are thinking you’re not a team player but it’s the opposite.

I got on really well with all my bosses, but I never asked them for help. It would have been too awkward.

You constantly doubt your ability to do your job. You worry that people will notice how much time you’re taking to do what appears a simple task. I remember writing up minutes from a meeting. Instead of the word ‘specific’ I wrote ‘Pacific’. In my mind that was right. The memory has stayed with me, now I’m nervous when I take minutes.

Wes was the first person outside my family that I’d ever told. When I heard he wanted to set up a staff network I thought ‘I’m going to email him and tell him I’m dyslexic too. He asked if I’d help lead the network.

Since we launched more and more people have come forward to tell us about their experiences. They’ve been mixed and people want change quickly but it takes time. We’re planning to speak with managers across the Trust; to help them understand what it feels like to be dyslexic so staff feel more able to talk to them.

We’re lucky; we’ve been given the freedom by the Board to create what’s needed. They’ve listened to us and made changes to policies and introduced IT solutions such as reading and writing software.

I’m proud and thankful that Wes had the courage and drive to set up the network. My own message to anyone struggling is 'swallow your pride and ask for help'.”

• Cara Donnelli-Hunn is executive assistant to Mersey Care’s Chief Executive, Joe Rafferty and Chairman, Beatrice Fraenkel.