Independent living for the disabled

Disability has become a human rights issue, with priority being given to the full integration of people with disability into society. Employment is key to this integration. For all citizens, quality of life, social well-being and personal fulfilment are generated by insertion into the mainstream job market.

Employment allows the disabled person to move away from being dependent to becoming an active participant who contributes to society. Most of the time, it is not impairments that prevent disabled people from finding and keeping a job, but obstacles that continue to exclude them from society, such as the lack of accessible transportation, lack of accessible buildings, lack of appropriate assistive aids and equipment, and a lack of access to services.

Vocational training and employment are central to social integration. Training is needed to increase employ­ability skills. Malta is a signatory of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which requires effective measures to ensure personal mobility with the greatest possible independence.

Mobility is also an essential aspect of daily life and the independence of driving a car or travelling as a passenger is valued by all.

Disabled people in Malta have difficulty accessing public transport and still need to rely on family or friends to be taken to school, work or social activities. Because of these difficulties, many remain excluded from employment opportunities, access to education and social life.

A 2003 study by the National Commission for People withDisability (KNPD) and the National Statistics Office on the concerns of people with disability found that in the 20 to 59 age bracket, only 24.4 per cent out of 60.2 per cent employed were people with disability.

Around 15 per cent have no income, while half have a monthly income of less than €466, €93 less than the minimum wage. Over a third receive a disability pension, which means they tend to depend heavily on their families.

Those claiming they would need transport to attend a training course constituted 35.5 per cent, and 30.1 per cent said they would need a place with physical accessibility. Another 65.7 per cent needed training to be able to work.

One of the recommendations was that there should be more support and training so that disabled people can be part of the labour market, mostly in non-elementary and non-clerical occupations, with the possibility of part-time employment.

Many employers feel that employment depends on the type of job and disability. Very often they are not ready to dedicate parts of their profit to making the necessary adaptations for the eventual recruitment of a disabled person.

However, if the right tools and set-up are provided, a disabled person is able to contribute as much as any other employee.

Public transport is inaccessible and private adapted transport services are costly. There are no mobility centres for professional assessments and relevant advice and training.

People with mobility problems in Malta are sporadically assessed by therapists in hospitals and most of the time have to order adaptations for their cars or vans without having tried them out first.

The same applies to assistive technology and equipment, such as wheelchairs, seating solutions and aids for daily living. Also, local suppliers do not stock a wide variety of such equipment. Those who need a more specialised assessment very often choose to go to mobility centres abroad, a costly alternative.

An independent living centre would provide local professionals with access to standardised assessment technology. KNPD’s Assistive Apparatus Service offers advice and financial help to disabled people and their families who wish to buy equipment for a more independent life.

A recent study visit to the Disabled Living Foundation and Queen Elizabeth Foundation Mobility Centre in the UK, funded by the EU Leonardo Programme, was to focus on setting up an ILC in Malta.

The ILC will include a mobility centre and an equipment demonstration/assessment centre, part of which would be the wheelchair and seating clinic. The main aim of the project would therefore be to empower people with disability by offering them the basic tools and skills to find and keep a job without unnecessary problems.

The second phase of the project will consist of training for healthcare professionals. The training will include participation in courses abroad and visits by foreign experts to Malta.

Trainers from Assist UK will also give their expert contribution in the area of assistive equipment and technology and will coordinate visits for Maltese therapists to independent living centres in the UK.

The training will be mainly for occupational therapists, physiotherapists and driving instructors. Providing training in mobility skills for people with disability and for specialist staff who work in this sector is another measure recommended by the UN Convention.

www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/conventioninfo.htm

Ms Callus and Ms Gauci are executive director, KNPD, and principal occupational therapist/manager, Assistive Apparatus Service, respectively.