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Purpose: This paper aimed to provide an overview of the evaluation of the GRID Network (Groups for Rehabilitation and Inclusive Development) and the impact it had on its members.

Method:  Information was collected through a compilation of the resources developed during the project, and a summative evaluation process was employed at the end of the project. The paper is a short report on the summative evaluation.

Results: GRID Network members reported that the network was effective and beneficial. They developed new information and knowledge that was relevant to their local contexts; shared knowledge from local, national, and international sources; and, increased their skill in using social media for professional purposes. Recommendations include continuing with this kind of community of practice, with greater opportunities for more engagement and training; inclusion of more partner organisations; large group workshops and conferences; increased attention to advocacy for policy change; and, for more research to be carried out locally.

Conclusion and Implications: This project demonstrated that it is possible to develop and maintain a community of practice in a low-resource context on a minimal budget, even during times of political crisis. Further programme development, evaluation, and research are warranted to ascertain how this model can be scaled up to include a broader group of rehabilitation and other practitioners involved in disability inclusive development.

Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development, [S.l.], v. 30, n. 2, p. 84-94,  (2019)

Purpose: The study focussed on the effect of Abacus training on numerical ability (comprising of counting and mathematical operations) of children with hearing loss.

Method: 90 students with hearing loss were sampled from 6 special schools in Mumbai, India. A quasi- experimental study was employed using two group pre-test and post-test design. Data were collected using the Numerical Ability Test (NAT) as an instrument. Six null hypotheses based on the objectives were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance using t-Test - Assuming Equal Variances.

Results: The findings revealed that the experimental group which was instructed through Abacus showed higher proficiency in numerical ability as compared to the control group instructed through the conventional method. Gender as a variable seems to influence the mean achievement of numerical ability of students with hearing loss. While girls and boys did not differ in simple tasks such as counting, boys were found to be better in mathematical operations and overall numerical ability.

Conclusions: The Abacus teaching method results in higher mathematical achievements among students with hearing loss. Gender also plays an important role in mathematical learning, as evidenced by boys demonstrating more numerical ability than girls in the study sample.

Introduction:

Swedish municipalities face a number of daunting challenges; an aging population, the public’s increased demands and expectations on municipality services, and a strained economy to mention some. Welfare technology, a Scandinavian concept launched to promote digitalization, is seen as one solution to meet these challenges.

Objective: 

Despite these promises, few welfare technology applications are offered by local Swedish municipalities and care organizations. Numerous studies have shown that Swedish municipalities have a great interest in welfare technologies.

Methods: 

In this article, we draw on empirical research in one Swedish municipality. Through two case studies it is illustrated how technological change and municipality employment of welfare technologies are employed.

Results: 

These case studies show how core values of care are being lost in the quest for digitalization due to the lack of organizational skills and knowledge in transforming the relationship of caregiving and care-receiving through the use of digital technology.

Conclusions: 

Digitalization and welfare technologies deployed ought to represent and support the core values of caregiving and to receive care. Thus, digital transformation most likely will transform conditions for care receivers and working conditions for care workers. New work processes will evolve, which in turn produce new meanings of home help service work and caregiving.

Assistive technology (AT) is an essential facilitator of independence and participation, both for people living with the effects of disability and/or non-communicable disease, as well as people aging with resultant functional decline. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes the substantial gap between the need for and provision of AT and is leading change through the Global Cooperation on Assistive Technology (GATE) initiative. Showcasing innovations gathered from 92 global researchers, innovators, users and educators of AT through the WHO GREAT Summit, this article provides an analysis of ideas and actions on a range of dimensions in order to provide a global overview of AT innovation. The accessible method used to capture and showcase this data is presented and critiqued, concluding that “innovation snapshots” are a rapid and concise strategy to capture and showcase AT innovation and to foster global collaboration.

The aim of this literature review and research was to provide an update on disability and rehabilitation in Mongolia, and to identify potential barriers and facilitators for implementation of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Disability Action Plan (GDAP). A 4-member rehabilitation team from the Royal Melbourne Hospital conducted an intensive 6-day workshop at the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences, for local healthcare professionals (n=77) from medical rehabilitation facilities (urban/rural, public/private) and non-governmental organizations. A modified Delphi method (interactive sessions, consensus agreement) identified challenges for rehabilitation service provision and disability education and attitudes, using GDAP objectives

Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, Volume 50, Number 4, April 2018, pp. 358-366(9)

https://doi.org/10.2340/16501977-2207
 

In 2015, Humanity & Inclusion HI began the project: “Empowering persons with disabilities to contribute to equal access to basic social services and local policymaking processes in under-resourced areas of Ayeyarwady and Mandalay”. The project supported Disabled Peoples Organizations and other civil society groups to participate in the development of inclusive regional policies and programmes, and to promote good practices contributing to greater access to services for persons with disabilities. An aim was also to document, publish and disseminate these good practices throughout Myanmar, increasing awareness and understanding in order to sensitise people to disability inclusion and influence policy change. Rather than focusing on what is not working, this report seeks to shift attention to what has worked locally and how it could be replicated in other parts of the country, providing constructive, practical recommendations to decision-makers, service providers and other community groups in Myanmar. The report is related to two projects. The second is “Advocacy for Change: Fostering protection and rights of men and women with disabilities in Myanmar”. 

There are global recommendations. There are seven good practices:

• Related to education:  Case Study I: Promoting Inclusion of children with disabilities in Middle Schools of Ayartaw. Case Study II: How the development of the teacher training promotes inclusion of all children in education
• Related to economic life: Case Study III: How partnerships between private companies and organizations of people with disabilities can improve access to employment and vocational training
• Related to social/community life: Case Study IV: Giving the Myanmar Deaf Community access to information.  Case Study V: How parental advocacy can make a difference
• Related to political life: Case Study VI: Community advocacy in obtaining the National Registration Card. Case Study VII: Supporting people with disabilities to participate in Myanmar elections

The Pacific Disability Forum (PDF), in partnership with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Task Team on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action and the International Disability Alliance (co-chair of the Task Team), held a regional multi-stakeholder consultation for the Pacific in Nadi, Fiji from 24 – 25 January 2018.

The workshop was the first in a series of regional consultations which will support the development of the IASC Guidelines on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action (“the Guidelines”). 

The Guidelines will assist humanitarian actors, governments, affected communities and organizations of persons with disabilities to coordinate, plan, implement, monitor and evaluate essential actions that foster the effectiveness, appropriateness and efficiency of humanitarian action, resulting in the full and effective participation and inclusion of persons with disabilities and changing practice across all sectors and in all phases of humanitarian action. 

This publication provides introductory chapters from two activists who work to create better opportunities for people with disabilities in Nigeria and India. Subsequently, the challenges that organisations worldwide have encountered whilst improving the access to and knowledge of sexual and reproductive health and rights for people with disabilities are presented. Ways in which they managed to find solutions and the results achieved are reviewed. Some cases show the importance of a more personal approach whilst others emphasise the advantage of changing systems and policies. Different regions, types of disabilities and various SRHR-topics are reflected in these stories. All cases provide lessons learnt that contribute to a set of recommendations for improved responses. The closing chapter highlights the challenges, solutions, and ambitions that are presented and lead up to a concise overview of recommendations.  

Good practice examples include:

A shift in SRH programming (Nepal)

Breaking Barriers with performance art (Kenya)

Her Body, Her Rights (Ethiopia)

People with disabilities leading the way (Israel Family Planning Association)

Best Wishes for safe motherhood (Nepal)

It’s my body! (Bangladesh)

Calling a spade a spade (Netherlands)

Four joining forces (Colombia)

Change agents with a disability (Zimbabwe)

Tito’s privacy and rights (Argentina)

Sign language for service providers (Kenya)

The ideology of Emancipatory Disability Research (EDR) reflected in the phrase ‘Nothing about us without us’, was first put forward in the 1990s. Although it aimed to place research control in the hands of the ‘researched’, i.e., people with disability, this rarely happens even today, 25 years later.

The Community Action Research on Disability (CARD) programme in Uganda embraced and modified the EDR approach, recognising the need for including people with disability in the research process from concept to outcome, and nurturing participation and collaboration between all the stakeholders in achieving action-based research. The research teams always included people with disability and staff from Disability People’s Organisations (DPOs) as well as academics and service providers. It endeavoured to generate and carry out research around issues that mattered to people with disability and their families. Leadership roles were assigned by team members. The objectives of the CARD programme were: (1) to fund teams to carry out action-based research on disability in Uganda; (2) to develop research and administrative capacity to manage the initiative within the academic registrar’s office at Kyambogo University; (3) to incorporate new knowledge generated from the studies into the ongoing local community-based rehabilitation and special education courses; and, (4) to ensure wide dissemination of research findings to all stakeholder groups.

CARD ran for 5 years, commissioning 21 action research studies in the field of disability and community-based services. This paper describes the process, presents the 12 completed studies, examines the extent to which the objectives were achieved and evaluates the experiences of the participating research teams, particularly in relation to the inclusion of its members with disability. It concludes with recommendations for future initiatives designed to promote validity, good value and inclusive approaches in disability research.