The Republic Center for Support of Persons with Intellectual Disability – PORAKA, in the past period, intensively works on the initiative for creation of early intervention service for children with intellectual disability. Considering the lack of this type of services in Republic of Macedonia, and bearing in mind the exceptional importance of the support that early intervention offers in the first years of children’s life, the Republic Center – PORAKA began with concrete activities for mapping and finding possibilities and resources for practical realization and creation of a pilot service of early intervention in Skopje.
The first step in the creation and design of the early intervention service is determining the model which would be accepted as a base, and afterwards adapted to the conditions in the Republic of Macedonia. Suggested by prof.dr.Manferd Pretis (Austrian expert on early intervention and associate of PORAKA) and in cooperation with NET Foundation – partner organization from Bulgaria, representatives of PORAKA took part in a study visit to two early intervention centers for children with intellectual disability on Vienna and Kapfenberg in order to see the Austrian early intervention model. The study visit included 4 parts:
1. Visit to the early intervention center of VINCO organization in Kapfenberg, where information was received in regards to methodology through the individual working plans approach for every beneficiary. The managerial team of the center shared information about the organizational aspects and structure: number of beneficiaries, number of personnel, working dynamics with families in home etc. Additionally, information was given in relation to the structure and management of the service and for the finances and cooperation with local authorities (100% coverage of all expenses by the municipality through individual budgeting of the needs for every beneficiary). VINCO’s documentation system is developed as an online instrument based on ICF – WHO classification, which is interesting innovation and significant possibility for multiplication in Macedonia.
2. Visit to the early intervention center of social services in Vienna, which is the largest service provider of this type in Austria. The visit to this center was realized together with the Bulgarian colleagues for NET Foundation, and the managerial team in the center presented all aspects of their functioning in details. Besides the excellent technical conditions for work, it has been noticed that there is high level of organization culture and management. This model, unlike that of VINCO, is characterized by a high level of flexibility in terms of receiving and disposal of finances by the local self-government, whereby 100% coverage of expenses is conditioned with creation number of beneficiaries that have to be included during the year.
3. Working meeting in the Austrian Ministry of Labor, Social Policy and Consumer Protection with Mr. Harald Fuger, Austrian Attaché in the Republic of Macedonia with the aim of providing support for creation of the early intervention service in Macedonia. It has been agreed that Mr. Fuger would be involved in the process of lobbying for the need of creating a model and an early intervention service, as well as direct support in the negotiations with the Ministry of labor and Social Policy. Additionally, it has been agreed that Mr. Fuger, in his 2015 programme for Macedonia would include public debates, training or seminars on the topic of early intervention, which would be supported by the Austrian Ministry of Labor, Social Policy and Consumer Protection.
