Community-Based Rehabilitation

People with disabilities are often isolated and do not play an active role in their communities. Handicap International’s Community-Based Rehabilitation projects involve the whole community in the rehabilitation process, including people with disabilities, their families, communities, local organisations and social, health and education services.

The idea of Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) is to support communities so they can assume responsibility for ensuring that all their members, including those with disabilities, are given equal access to locally available resources and participate fully in the economic, social and political life of the community.

CBR projects work by decentralising responsibility to community-level organisations, along with human and financial resources, while building local capacity and skills for facilitating community involvement. CBR stimulates local initiatives and self-determination by supporting projects where people with disabilities become the main actors. Income generating projects, sport or leisure activities all have a part to play.

CBR projects include various activities:

• Promoting a positive attitude towards people with disabilities

  CBR projects are inclusive and participatory, involving community members from the beginning of the project to ensure their full commitment.

• Preventing the causes of disability
  

  Simple measures can be taken to prevent many disabilities. Early detection of disability and early intervention can significantly reduce the effect of an impairment over the course of a person’s lifetime. The importance of accessing pre-natal care and medical assistance during childbirth is a key factor.

• Providing rehabilitation services

  CBR workers should be able to provide primary rehabilitation care and liaise with professional services in various sectors: medical, eye and hearing care, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, psychological counselling, and orthotics and prosthetics technicians.

• Inclusion in education and training

  People with disabilities must have equal access to education and training services. CBR workers help teachers and trainers to include people with disabilities in their courses.

• Supporting local initiatives

  Income-generating activities, microcredit schemes, theatre, and sports are all activities that can be facilitated by CBR workers and communities.

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