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Purpose: This survey aimed to assess the baseline level of access to social institutions, utilisation of civil facilities and participation in empowerment schemes by people with disabilities in Amravati district of Maharashtra State, India.

Method: Sixty villages from two blocks in Amravati district were randomly selected for the survey. From these villages, 522 households were sampled and 3056 individuals were surveyed. Interviews were conducted with 590 individuals with disability from among the surveyed population. The structured interview schedule consisted of demographic data, access to social organisations, utilisation of civil services, and participation in empowerment schemes. 

Results: Locomotor disability was the most prevalent (44.6%) type of disability in the study area. Disabilities were more often present among male adolescents and young adults than among the older population and females. Over 50% of the study participants had no occupation (including children and students) and had not been to school. Only 48% had achieved secondary education and more. The proportion of disability among people belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was considerably higher than among the general population. Access to social institutions was less than 50% for most of the items, and was even lower among females. Except for the ration card and Aadhar card, civil services were generally under-utilised by people with disability. Only 3.2% of the participants were members of self-help groups, and not a single person was a member of the Disabled People’s Organisation.

Conclusions:  In the study area access to social institutions, utilisation of civil services and participation in empowerment schemes was very low.

Limitations: Data, including general socio-demographic, access and utility data, was not collected for the general population but was limited to people with disabilities. This restricted the scope for comparison between people with and without disabilities.

Disability, CBR and Inclusive Development, Vol 30, No 1 (2019)

This USA based toolkit is intended to help self-advocates and their allies to advocate for Real Jobs for Real Pay and for Competitive Integrated Employment (CIE). It covers the issues with sheltered workplaces and the advantages of CIE. It also covers what individuals can do locally, at the State level and nationally. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) is outlined. Four self advocate stories are given.

This briefing considers how stigma affects people with disabilities and why challenging stigma is a critical issue for development.

Examples of successful efforts by UK non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to reduce and eliminate stigma are briefly outlined including: self help groups; alliances between groups (including DPOs); staff training; skills training and wider awareness raising.

Introduction: Success of e-health relies on the extent to which the related technology, such as the electronic device, is accepted by its users. However, there has been limited research on the patients’ perspective on use of e-health-related technology in rehabilitation care.

Objective: To explore the usage of common electronic devices among rehabilitation patients with access to email and investigate their preferences regarding their usage in rehabilitation.

Methods: Adult patients who were admitted for inpatient and/or outpatient rehabilitation and were registered with an email address were invited to complete an electronic questionnaire regarding current and preferred use of information and communication technologies in rehabilitation care.

Results: 190 out of 714 invited patients completed the questionnaire, 94 (49%) female, mean age 49 years (SD 16). 149 patients (78%) used one or more devices every day, with the most frequently used devices were: PC/laptop (93%), smartphone (57%) and tablet (47%). Patients mostly preferred to use technology for contact with health professionals (mean 3.15, SD 0.79), followed by access to their personal record (mean 3.09, SD 0.78) and scheduling appointments with health professionals (mean 3.07, SD 0.85).

Conclusion: Most patients in rehabilitation used one or more devices almost every day and wish to use these devices in rehabilitation.

Malezi AIDS Care Awareness Organization (MACAO) is a non-profit organization reaching out to neglected Indigenous people in Ngorongoro District, Arusha Region of Northern Tanzania.  Macao founded in 2003, Macao is a humanitarian organization that provides assistance to approximately 200,000 Indigenous Maasai community in Ngorongoro district for addressing needs of water and sanitation, food security, health Care Research, Education, Research environment, Maasai Traditional Research, Human Rights and sustainable economic development by strengthening their livelihoods.  In addition to responding to major relief situations, MACAO focuses on long-term community development through over 4 Area Development Project. We welcome the donors and volunteers to join us in this programs, we are wolking in ruro villages.

This policy paper is based on the practice and experience acquired by Handicap International (HI) in working with and supporting organisations representative of people with disabilities. The paper first outlines the development of DPOs and their particular roles and responsibilities with regards to the goal of improving the situation of persons with disabilities. It then discusses the importance of supporting DPOs specifically regarding HI’s engagement, presents key components of projects, and highlights links with HI’s institutional framework documents. This paper is useful for anyone interested in support to organisations representative of persons with disabilities

This video features HIV and AIDS prevention and education initiatives in Kenya. It particularly targets the youth population due to a lack of available information and risk behaviours, such as sexuality, drug use and alcohol use. In order to prevent risks and present treatment options for the youth who are AIDS-carriers, several youth groups organized the following activities to prevent and fight the disease: street theatre for awareness-raising, group education sessions, and promotion of VCT services for communication and information. This video contains several testimonies and one features Mercy, a young girl who has AIDS after working as prostitute to feed her two children and is now involved in a support group

Nursing as a family-oriented profession involves supporting mothers of children with learning disabilities to gain an awareness of their role. However, few studies have explored the whole experience of such mothers. This study embarks on an understanding of lived experiences of Iranian mothers who have children with learning disabilities. A qualitative approach was adopted using the phenomenology of semi-structured interviews carried out with six Iranian mothers whose children attended a special school in Tehran. The data were analysed in line with van Manen’s suggestions. Two main themes were abstracted; being the centre of stress circles and being in the midst of life and death. Themes include care management challenges for self and child, experiencing through helplessness and hopefulness and experiencing self devote and self neglect. Overall, a majority of mothers experienced a stressful life. The study concludes that Iranian mothers’ lived experience of having children with learning disabilities can be likened to the constant swing of a pendulum between two polarities of positive and negative feelings. This knowledge can provide an heuristic to help health staff guide mothers in adjusting to their children who have learning disabilities.

"In 2005, Handicap International commissioned a study on the practices of funding for self-employment activities of people with disabilities (PWD), with a special focus on access to microfinance. The overall goal of the study was to produce a framework document highlighting good practices, strategies, tools and operational methods that guarantee the efficiency and sustainability of self-employment projects for PWDs. The first phase of the study consisted of a literature review and a worldwide survey. Through this first phase the research team identified the most innovative programmes for further analysis through field visits. In the second phase field visits were conducted in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Nicaragua and Uganda, while regional workshops were organised in Dhaka and Nairobi. Phase three involved consolidation and analysis of the information and finally drafting of the framework document. This paper summarises the findings and good practices as presented in the framework document, based on the results of the literature review, the survey and the field research. It is not a scientific paper, i.e. it doesn't contain a discussion of the literature reviewed or systematic reference to sources, the same as the document on which it is based, as it is primarily meant for practitioners"
Leprosy Review, Vol 79, Issue 1