DIS is my ABILITY – LeMSIC Lebanon

Name of the activity: DIS is my ABILITY

Country/NMO: LeMSIC Lebanon

Program: Ethics and Human Rights in Health

Contact information: contact [email protected] to get in touch with the Activity Coordinator

Type of the activity: First-time Activity

Category: Campaign

Focus area: Rights of People with Disabilities

Sustainable Development Goals addressed: SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions)

Problem statement:

An estimated 10-15% of the Lebanese population has physical, sensory, intellectual, or mental disabilities, with higher rates among refugees. One extensive study in 2017 showed “alarming knowledge gaps” regarding children with  disability among the public. Given all of that, LeMSIC – Lebanon decided to launch this campaign tackling the rights of people with disabilities.

Target groups:

• Medical students
• Children
• Youth
• People with disabilities

Beneficiaries:

• General population
• Medical students
• Other Students
• Youth
• Women
• People with disabilities

Objectives:

1- Raise the awareness of at least 100 students from general education schools between the ages 11-14 on what disability is and the rights of people with disabilities before the end of May.

2- Design at least 20 social activities tackling at least 3 forms of impairment before the end of May.

3- Involve at least 60 children with disabilities from at least one specialized school in social bonding and team building activities with at least 100 students between the ages of 11-14 from at least one general education school before the end of May.

4- Build the capacity of at least 25 medical students on how to deal with children with disabilities within the clinical setting before the end of May.

Indicators of Success:

Objective 1:

– Students spend at least 20 minutes asking relevant questions about the topic of children with disabilities.

– At least 70% of students report an increase and/or changed understanding to what a disability is.

Objective 2:

– Children with disabilities express interest in at least 70% of the activities designed.

–  At least 80% of children engage in at least 70% of designed activities.

Objective 3: 

-At least 80% of children with disability reported positive feelings about team and social activities carried out.

Objective 4:

– At least 80% of students stay for at least 75% of the session given.

– There is a general increase in knowledge of around 50% among medical students in how to approach children with disability.

Methodology:

Coordinate with the Lebanese School for the Blind and the Deaf (LSBD) and Sagesse Brasilia School to set a general idea about the campaign.

Send a call for an Organizing Committee composed of different teams to bring this campaign to life.

Design 3 different groups of activities catered to different impairments.

Divide LSBD students into 3 groups based on their impairment (Blind, Deaf, Learning Disability) and sub-divide them according to age to ensure activities are age and impairment appropriate.

Divide Sagesse School students into different groups each headed by a trained LeMSIC volunteer to rotate around the 3 impairment groups.

Group heads hold reflection sessions with Sagesse School students to explore attitudes of the students about disabilities before and after the activity to note any change.

Plans for evaluation:

Quantitative Evaluation: 

Pre- and Post-Evaluation: A Pre-Evaluation form will be sent to the medical students prior to the sessions. A Post-Evaluation form will be sent to the participants 1 week after the end of the session.

A full report of the initiative will be drafted with designed activities an in order to fill in the gaps, highlight the strengths and discuss ways to expand  and increase the reach to include more students and children.

Qualitative Evaluation:

Informal Evaluation: This type of evaluation will be used throughout the training and sessions  to make sure the knowledge is acquired by the participants properly. The discussions will be evaluated to assess if participants have fully grasped the concepts and can apply them when needed. This evaluation will be also used for school children as well

End-of-training Feedback Form: This form will be sent to the participants with the post-evaluation form in order to assess their satisfaction regarding the session.

External collaborations:

Lebanese school for blind and deaf: Venue for activities and access to children with disabilities

Sagesse Brasilia School: Abled school children involvement