Two new social services launched in Anenii Noi

Two social services for people with disabilities have been launched in Anenii Noi today: the Mobile Team and the Community Home. Both services have been established by the Anenii Noi Rayonal Council with the support of Keystone Moldova. 31 persons with disabilities from the rayon benefit from the assistance provided within these two services.

The Community Home service is situated in Chirca village and is established by local public authorities as a public institution, with the financial support provided by Open Society Foundations/Mental Health Initiatives. This service provides the possibility to live in the community to six persons with disabilities, who were deinstitutionalized from the Orhei Residential Institution for Children with Mental Disabilities (boys) in December, 2013.

Home residents receive specialized care from a support team that helps them gain more independence and develop their own potential. The services offered are provided according to the individual needs of each person and focus, to a great extent, on providing quality care and learning basic life skills, such as: the ability to eat without support, the ability to coordinate movements in space, the ability to do own hygiene, dressing, etc. Also, the support team involves home residents in household, vocational, recreational activities, including establishment of social relationships. If necessary, professionals from other services in the community are involved in assisting them.

The Mobile Team Social Service has been established in the rayon with the support of Keystone Moldova, within the project Public-Private Partnership for the Sustainable Development of Locally Governed Disability Services: Supporting Decentralization Reform, funded by the European Union. To develop the service, local public authorities have identified a place, have it repaired and equipped with furniture and equipment.

They offered an electricity generator, and then a car, furniture and additional equipment, physical therapy tools, teaching materials and specialized literature were bought from the project funds for the Mobile Team. Also, Keystone Moldova provided support in capacity building for the Mobile Team staff and supports service specialists methodologically.

The Mobile Team started its activity in May, 2013 and, at present, it provides assistance to 25 people aged between 3 and 21 years. Individual assistance plans were developed for all beneficiaries. Thanks to the intervention of the Mobile Team, the quality of life of people with disabilities has increased considerably: six families were facilitated access to social benefits, four children benefit from educational services, 10 persons receive medical assistance, other 10 persons benefited from specialized consultancy and received orthopedic and optical devices, 20 children benefit from physical therapy services and massage, 15 persons – from psychological counseling etc.

This year, the funding of both services was taken over by the state. There are 4349 people with disabilities in Anenii Noi, including 139 children and 562 adults with severe disabilities.

Keystone Moldova contributes to reforming the care and social protection system of persons with disabilities in view of their social inclusion through the Community for All – Moldova Program, which is implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Labor, Social Protection and Family, with the financial support of the Open Society Foundations/Mental Health Initiatives and the Soros-Moldova Foundation.