Damascus-SANA
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor provides curative and educational care for people with cerebral palsy from birth until the age of thirty-five. The Al-Noor Institute specializes in receiving children with cerebral palsy from birth until the age of 14, after which the Institute of Special Education takes care of adults, even through two educational and professional sections.
During a tour to see the reality of the work of the two institutes, the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, Muhammad Seif El-Din, indicated that the focus is on rehabilitating the beneficiaries of the services of the two institutes and empowering them educationally and professionally by developing new educational professions and crafts to be more effective and integrated into society, stressing that the difficulties discussed with those in charge of the establishment will be addressed. The two institutes in terms of providing transportation and specialized cadres, in addition to providing everything that contributes to the development of work in terms of educational means and modern technologies.
The tour included the distribution of winter clothes and cash to the students of the two institutes, with the support of the Al Kafeel Foundation for Orphans Care, where Ahmed Ali, Chairman of its Board of Directors, demonstrated the importance of the participation of NGOs and institutions with government agencies to support the various vulnerable groups in society.
Al-Noor Institute for the Care and Rehabilitation of Children with Cerebral Palsy currently provides treatment and educational services to 60 boys and girls from the age of months to 14 years old, according to the director of the institute, Zulekha Bazo, who indicated that the institute’s services include physical therapy, rehabilitation, education, and skills development in a special section for early intervention, in which it participates alongside specialists. The institute is a family member, especially the mother, to follow the physiotherapy plan at home, while providing educational services for children from 6 to 14 years old through teaching the Ministry of Education curriculum.
For his part, Director of the Social Welfare Institute for Adults with Cerebral Palsy, Izzat Al-Saleh, explained that the institute includes an educational department, where the Ministry of Education curriculum is taught, and a vocational training department in simple professional crafts such as beadwork, canvas, drawing and coloring, and rehabilitation services such as behavior modification and skills development.
According to Al-Salih, the institute’s services also include health care, such as physical therapy and speech, explaining that its capacity is up to 65 students.
Amer Deeb