The Ministry of Labor presented the Belarusian experience of social rehabilitation of disabled people at a conference in Tashkent

The III International Conference on the Development of Social and Rehabilitation Services was held in Tashkent. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus presented the domestic experience of social rehabilitation of disabled people, the press service of the department told sb.by.

Head of the Department of Social Integration of Disabled Persons of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection Elena Zelenko made a report “Development of the system of social rehabilitation of disabled persons in social service institutions of the Republic of Belarus”.

In her speech, Elena Zelenko cited the key facts and figures of the Belarusian system. More than 550,000 people with disabilities live in Belarus, which is 6% of the population. Every year, more than 100 thousand citizens are provided with means of rehabilitation by social protection and health care organizations from the state budget in the amount of about 70 million rubles.

The Republican Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children annually undergoes comprehensive rehabilitation of about 1.3 thousand children, while improving health is recorded in 98 percent of patients. Rehabilitation is provided by 146 territorial social service centers with more than 180 departments of social rehabilitation and habilitation with a day stay, as well as 90 social boarding houses.

Prospects for the development of social rehabilitation of disabled people include several directions. The development of support and care systems is planned: increasing the coverage of care, rehabilitation, habilitation and ensuring access to the environment. It also provides for the digitalization of state support – the introduction of a proactive format for the payment of disability pensions and other state support.

In addition, it is planned to generalize and apply existing social rehabilitation practices, develop specialized methods for social rehabilitation of disabled people with autism spectrum disorder, after strokes and injuries. Another direction is to expand the participation of persons with disabilities in public life: involvement in the development and implementation of decisions affecting them, creating conditions for economic independence.