Training «Selection of a wheelchair for people with disabilities»

The year 2011 has come to an end. Many events and programs organized by the Luhansk Regional Youth Public Organization «Association of Young Disabled People of Eastern Donbas-East» and the Luhansk Regional Center for Social and Cultural Adaptation of Youth with Disabilities are still in my memory. But there are also some of them that are remembered for their «zest» and uniqueness. One of them will be discussed today.

I remember in October 2011, when I returned from Simferopol, where I had attended a training course on selecting a wheelchair for people with disabilities, our employee Irina Kolyagina was talking non-stop and with great enthusiasm about how useful this trip was for her, how many new and interesting things she had learned. «You know, it was such a revelation for me how much you need to know when issuing a technical rehabilitation device to make a person with mobility problems feel comfortable, convenient and that the device does not contribute to health deterioration! How professionally and individually it turns out to be possible to approach such a question» - said Irina Vitalievna, and we... we listened and looked forward to when such a training with the subsequent delivery of new wheelchairs would be held in Luhansk? And... we waited!

The Luhansk Regional Vocational School held a training session on «Wheelchair Selection».

To begin with, we would like to introduce our website visitors to the activities of the organizations presented above, as few people know about their work, which is not only multifaceted, but, most importantly, is of great importance and value in helping socially vulnerable categories of the population.

Director of the IRD Humanitarian Project at the U.S. Department of State - Tatiana Zhabenko

So, let's consider the tasks and functions of the American public organization International Relief and Development, Inc. (IRD) in the context of the US State Department's project in the Luhansk region (the materials used are taken from a presentation prepared by the organization's specialists).

Years of the project in Luhansk Oblast: 2005-2011.

As a result of the project implementation, we received: 57 containers, including 31 containers with medical equipment and supplies and 26 containers with non-medical goods for the amount of USD 10.381.050.00; Recipients: 364,481 people

Main tasks:

• Purchase and transportation of medical and non-medical supplies for vulnerable people in Luhansk Oblast;
• Monitoring the distribution of medical and non-medical supplies through local NGOs;
• Improving the living conditions of the most vulnerable through small-scale reconstruction and repair projects.

Partners of the organization:

• Red Cross Society of Luhansk region;
• Krasnoluchsk Charitable Foundation «Mercy»;
• «Soyuz Chernobyl;
• Luhansk Regional Children's Clinical Hospital.

Donors of the organization:

• U.S. Department of State;
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints;
• Lutheran Church;
• The CURE;
• Globus Aid Foundation.

Recipients of humanitarian aid from the US State Department:

• 152 NGOS;
• 62 schools;
• 2 orphanages;
• 19 territorial social service centers;
• 44 medical institutions;
• 13 boarding schools.

Specific examples of activities:

• Renovation of the dental department at the Krasnodon Central District Hospital (2008);
• Repair of showers and water supply system at the Krasnoluchsk Construction Lyceum (2009);
• Repair of showers and water supply system in hospital No. 3 in Antratsyt. Anthracite (2010);
• Repair of the first-aid post in Ogulchansk village, Krasnodon district (2011).

The Humanitarian Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the article uses materials from the official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

«Every year millions of men, women and children suffer the devastating effects of war, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes and other disasters. In these extremely difficult circumstances, the number of people saved from death depends on the speed of the assistance provided.

The church is constantly collecting donations of food, clothing, medical supplies and other essential items. These supplies are then stored in key locations where they can be dispatched immediately if needed. This preparedness allows the Church to respond immediately to unforeseen emergencies.

When it is critical to provide quick relief, international aid agencies have already begun to rely on the Church to deliver food and supplies.

In addition to helping with clothes and food, the Church also provides funds and volunteers. It is the volunteers who often do the most to restore hope in the lives of those in difficulty.

One of the most recent examples is the more than 10,000 days of pro bono work done by members of the Church to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and the surrounding states.

From 1985 to 2008, the Church sent 61308 tons of food and 132028 tons of other necessities to more than 150 countries. In 2008, the Church responded to the Sichuan earthquake in China, famine in Ethiopia, a cyclone in Myanmar, hurricanes in Cuba, Haiti and the United States, and 118 other emergencies.

The church provides humanitarian aid in many cities of Ukraine.

Health care institutions, social services, rescue services, boarding schools, orphanages and nursing homes receive assistance from the Church.

Medical equipment, wheelchairs, bedding, containers with clothes, hygiene items and much more are sent to Ukrainian cities.

They include Kyiv, Chernihiv, Lviv, Dnipropetrovs'k, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Simferopol, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Sumy, Chernihiv, Rivne, Makeevka, Kremenchuk, Poltava, Cherkasy and others.

In the period from 2005 to 2009 alone, the church received and distributed humanitarian aid in Ukraine worth 47.2 million hryvnias.

Members of the church are actively involved in the Helping Hands program, which provides for specific ministry, including cleaning and beautification of localities, delivery of goods and materials to those in need, ministry to people with disabilities and much more.

All of this allows people to receive the necessary vital assistance and fosters in the members of the Church involved in these programs a love for people and a willingness to serve them, following the example of our Lord Jesus Christ.».

During the training, I had a chance to talk a little bit with the representatives of the Church - Elder Miner and Sister Miner - these very friendly and welcoming people told me that they are extremely concerned about the situation in the world, about the fact that poor disadvantaged people do not have the opportunity to live happily and with dignity for various economic and life reasons.

«We really want to help, to do everything in our power, and at the moment it is providing wheelchairs to those who really need them. If you ask, for example, whether the Church provides special wheelchairs for choreography classes, the answer will be no, because our initial goal is to help people acquire a technical means that would allow them to move around at least elementary within their apartment, house... to go out, to feel the fullness and beauty of life. At the same time, to our regret, we are not yet able to provide wheelchairs for people with severe forms of cerebral palsy (when a person cannot hold his head, his hands do not function, etc.), we mostly provide active wheelchairs.».

How did the training take place? Representatives of social institutions, public organizations of disabled people and volunteers gathered in one of the classrooms of the Luhansk Regional Vocational School and Boarding School to learn theoretical and practical knowledge on how to select a wheelchair, filling out a specially designed form for each person with a disability who receives a technical device.

As you can see, all the most important points and details have been taken into account, which will allow a person with mobility problems to choose a wheelchair that best suits their physiological needs.

The training participants were taught all the subtleties and basics of adjusting the height of the footrest and backrest, checking the brakes, adjusting the balance, and repairing the stroller.

The opinion of one of the participants, Alexey Kharchenko: «It was the first time I attended such an event and I want to say that the information I learned during it was very useful and interesting for me. Although I do not have any health problems, I work with people with musculoskeletal disorders on a daily basis, and therefore I need to have a certain set of skills that would allow me to help these people. From the lecture given by Pavel Snapov, Head of the Rehabilitation Department of the Kerch Branch of the Crimean National Medical University, I learned how dangerous pressure ulcers can be, what to do to prevent them, how to sit in a wheelchair, transfer from it, and accompany people with disabilities.».

And here is the opinion of Elena Rozhkova, head of the Luhansk City Public Organization «Center for Social Rehabilitation of Disabled People,» about the training: «I've been using a wheelchair for many years, and the process of getting a wheelchair in our country is a whole event that is awaited as a miracle, hoping to get a new means of rehabilitation that will allow me to lead an independent active lifestyle and develop, but it often happens that when you get this very tool, you find a lot of shortcomings and parameters that do not suit you. That is why I am happy that now in Luhansk there is an opportunity not only to receive such a long-awaited and expensive gift, but also to choose a wheelchair in accordance with all the necessary standards. I sincerely thank the organizers of the training for organizing and conducting it. It is very important!».

At the closing ceremony, all participants were awarded certificates

Afterwards, the speakers were the people without whose initiative, support and sensitivity this event would not have been so rich and useful: Director of the IRD Humanitarian Project of the U.S. Department of State Tatiana Zhabenko, IRD coordinator in Luhansk region Vasyl Rudenko, Head of the Main Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Luhansk Regional State Administration Eleonora Polishchuk, Head of the Luhansk Regional Organization «Red Cross Society of Ukraine» Olga Kudaeva, Head of the Luhansk Regional Youth NGO «Association of.

In turn, Elder Miner and Sister Miner thanked all the organizers, trainers, and participants for their excellent work and expressed hope that this is only the beginning of the noble path ahead!

Natalia Okhrimenko
LOMOO press center "AMI-East" + Photos