Concepts,Principles,Compone

nts of Community based

Rehabilitation
DR SHEETAL AURANGABADKAR(PT)
Synopsis

 Student should differentiate between Institute based rehabilitation, outreach programme

and community based rehabilitation.
 Able to define community based rehabilitation, list principles and components of
community based rehabilitation
Institution based rehabilitation

 Homes for the disabled, special schools for visually impaired, special schools for visually
impaired, special schools for mental retardation, cerebral palsy are some of the examples.
 Assessment ,informal education, vocational counselling and training , use of aids and
appliances are common services offered.
 They are usually run by NGO/private management and depends on external
funding ,children from upper and middle class are benefitted and only meagre number of
children are have access , as number of schools are less and located nearer to towns
/cities.
 Advantages of this type of rehabilitation include more focus for special children,
opportunity for individual planning, parents have time to attend work.
 Negative aspects are cost intensive , difficulty to establish special schools in villages,
towns and cities, number of institutions and rehabilitation manpower needed is
enormous, parental involvement is less , sustainability of programme is difficult and
transportation of children from home to school is difficult.
Camp Approaches

 Many NGO s /government agencies have tried organizing camps for surgery,
assessment , distribution of aids and appliances , issue of disability certificates for
children /adults.
 Positive aspects are reach of more people, reach to remote areas where rehabilitation
services are not available .
 Negative aspects questionable follow up services.
 Examples of camp organized by government of India with help of community and NGO s
–ALIMCO- largest manufacturer of aids and appliances for persons with locomotor
disability.
Outreach programmes

 Some NGOs in certain cities have tried to develop mechanism to ensure rehabilitation
services in slums through periodic visits by specialists, social workers and rehabilitation
workers.
 Attempts have been made to organize parents of disabled children, adult disabled – to
stand for their rights.
 Challenges are larger population of India and need for scaling up operation on a larger
scale. Priortising it and making it sustainable are some of other challenges.
Community Based rehabilitation

 CBR focuses on the needs of disabled individuals as well as involvement and

responsibilities of family and of communities in which persons with disabilities are
living.
 The goals of CBR are :
 To enable the PWD to participate as fully as he or she chooses in family life and in other
social activities.
 It provides opportunities for PWD to learn and develop their abilities , skills to be able to
integrate and participate in the society.
 To raise awareness in community to achieve barrier free environment ,to enable them to
participate in all activities without discrimination.
Basic principles of CBR

 1.Shifting services from the institution to the homes of disabled people : It focuses on
PWD living with their family, integrating them in community activities, be it in a
village /urban area.
 CBR enables people with disability to live independently through training in activities of
daily living skills , education , skills development ,employment opportunities,
accessibility and social interaction with other members of family and community.
 Interaction with other members of community ,without being neglected /discriminated.
 Shifting the services from professionals to trained community or family members : The
purpose is to demystify that training and care for PWD can be done only by
professionals. Members of the family and others have to be trained in giving these
services as professionals.
 Ensure that persons with disability have a say in planning and managing the programme :
It should be ensured that disabled people are regarded as both as receipients of services
as well as contributors to managing the programme. Disabled people should be involved
in taking decisions.
 Community based rehabilitation programme should be flexible so that they can operate at
local level , using locally available resources.
Following should be considered in starting
CBR programme

 Collect details of PWD in the area.

 Do general analysis of resources available to provide necessary services.
 Bring disabled people together in a forum and give them opportunity to express their
opinion and needs.
 Get the support of professionals, identify organisations supporting needs of the disabled.
 Ensure involvement of disabled persons in various government schemes.
 Disseminate information on disability and rights of PWD .
 Help people with disabilities and their families to become self reliant and active members
of society.