For the year 2005, the program provided services to 165 persons with disabilities and their families (male=100, female=65) with the following general categories:

• 92 physically impaired persons
• 54 mentally handicapped
• 10 hearing impaired persons
• 4 visually impaired persons
• 5 multiple handicapped persons

After 2 years of rendering CBR services to the persons with disabilities and their families in the 3 districts of So Phisai, Pakkard and Pornchareon, we decided to move out from Nong Hua Chang sub-district (under Pornchareon District) because we have already achieved the objectives of the program and the local government committee (OBOTO) of this place that is very active and willing to continue the collaboration and networking for persons with disabilities in their own area.  The fieldworkers had endorsed the necessary things and documents to the OBOTO to ensure continuance of proper assistance to the persons with disabilities and their families in the future.  Wang Chomphu, one of the poorest sub-districts of Porncharoen District is selected as the new area of services and the survey is now going on.

ACTIVITIES:

• Fieldwork. 
  • Meeting with Local Government Leaders
  • Meeting with families of persons with disabilities
  • Training for caregivers to take care of hemiplegic patients
  • Giving regular services to persons with disabilities:
    • Physical therapy and occupational therapy services and training for the physical impaired persons and parents or caregivers at home.
    • ADL (Activity of Daily Living) training and basic special education at home to prepare the disabled children to be integrated in a special school or into a local village school
    • Training and following-up O and M (Orientation and Mobility) for blind persons before referral to the Center for the Blind for vocational training in massage
    • Following-up through family or school visit,  the person with disability who is  sent to the vocational training center/school
• Referral Services
  • Vocational Training Centers – 4 persons with disabilities to study vocational courses
  • Integration of persons with disabilities to local village schools – 2 mentally handicapped children
  • Medical referrals for treatment of various illnesses – 12 persons with disabilities
• Welfare Assistance
  • Welfare subsidy to 200 persons with disabilities
  • 53 wheelchairs and 4 one-hand powered tricycle were provided to the paraplegic and hemiplegic persons in the program
• Social Activities of the Handicapped
  • Participated in the DC-CBR Games
  • Joined the Camping activities with CBR Loei
  • Joined in the National Handicapped Day in Nongkhai Province
• Coordination and Networking
  • Small scale livelihood and income generating projects.  2 groups (20 persons per group) of persons with disabilities and their families were organized.  They showed interest and willingness to undergo training on “How to raise catfish in 60 days”
  • Registration of persons with disabilities.  250 persons with disabilities were able to get their Identification Card from the Provincial Social Development and Human Security and 200 had renewed their ID through the program
  • Drawing up CBR Training Manual.  2 fieldworkers from this Center joined with fieldworkers from other 5 DC CBR projects to draw up a manual on CBR concepts and physical therapy treatment for persons who have impaired movement.  This manual will be used for the training of government grass-root workers as agreed upon in the memorandum of understanding between the DC-CBR program and the Department of Social Development and Human Security last year.
  • Local Community Radio Broadcasting.  A local radio station in So Phisai offered a 3 hours per week (1 hour every Monday, Wednesday and Friday) for us to talk about CBR services that the program is doing and entertain questions about CBR that are asked by persons with disabilities, their families and those who are interested.
  • American Physiotherapist. Paul Redmond, a physiotherapist from America spent his holidays in giving free services to the different DC-CBR projects in Thailand and gave assessment and PT rehabilitation plan to persons with disabilities.
•  Staff Training and Seminar
  • DC-CBR staff training/seminar on “Autistic and CP children”
• Attended workshop on “CBR core groups and their network in Northeast Region”
• Attended seminar-workshop on “Policy of the Social Development and Human Security in Helping the Target Group”