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ΚΟΙΝΩΝΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΠΛΗΡΟΦΟΡΙΑΣ ΜΑΕ
The pilot project "Personal Assistant for People with Disabilities" is a Service provided by the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family to people with disabilities and implemented by Information Society S.A. The project is part of the broader framework of a social support system for people with Disabilities, aiming at:
- the independent living of people with disabilities,
- the prevention of social exclusion and institutionalization as well as
- their active participation in the economic and social activity of the country.
Personal Assistance concerns the support of the person with a disability, by a Personal Assistant of his/her choice or, where applicable, his/her Representative (parent or legal guardian), to enhance his/her independent living and inclusion in society, based on his/her individual needs and life circumstances and in accordance with his/her individual choices and interests, indicatively with regard to the following:
- activities of daily life, such as feeding, clothing, personal hygiene,
- work and studies
- participation in leisure activities and
- activities of participation in social life.
Specifically, it consists of the Personal Assistant's activity together with the beneficiary within the beneficiary's home and outside it, in accordance with the instructions and suggestions of the beneficiary, or, as the case may be, of his Representative, and includes the provision of appropriate support to the beneficiary to the extent required as a result of the disability and the functional impairment it causes.
The beneficiaries of the program are:
1. Persons with disabilities classified under the following disability categories:
(a) people with a mobility disability;
(b) people with an intellectual and/or developmental and/or mental disability;
(c) people with a sensory disability (blind, deaf, and deaf-blind), aged between 16 and 65 years, with a disability rate of 67% or more.
Moreover, people with disabilities who are currently living in closed facilities may also benefit from the pilot program provided that they move to a normal house first.
2. Persons may become Personal Assistants provided that they:
(a) are aged between 18 and 67 years;
(b) have not been convicted of any offences;
(c) are legally residing in Greece and have the right to work, if they are third-country nationals;
(d) have good knowledge of the Greek language;
(e) hold a valid certificate of good mental health from a psychiatrist and a valid health certificate; and
(f) have successfully completed the free training provided by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.
Personal Assistants may be employed on an hourly basis, or they may receive a monthly salary if they are in a cohabitation arrangement with the disabled beneficiary.
In accordance with the decision for inclusion in the Recovery and Resilience Fund, the start date of the program is 21/3/2022 and the end date is 31/12/2025.
Independent living is a fundamental right of persons with disabilities and an obligation of the Hellenic State in accordance with the Hellenic Constitution and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, with particular emphasis on personal assistance.
In the above context, the pilot implementation of the ‘Personal Assistant for Independent Living’ project allows each disabled beneficiary to be supported in his/her routine and to be helped to develop the necessary skills for his/her daily needs, depending on his/her functionality and his/her social and personal circumstances and work status. By training the target population to live independently and providing appropriate tailored support services, the ‘Personal Assistant for Independent Living’ project aims at:
- improving the functionality of the target population;
- implementing an effective deinstitutionalization policy and preventing institutionalization;
- enhancing social inclusion for all beneficiaries, with a view to ultimately reducing the number of people in need of welfare support in the future, as well as the intensity of that support.
In accordance with Joint Ministerial Decision No. 28458/2022 (Government Gazette, Series II, No 1427/24.3.2022) and the Call for Expressions of Interest of 23 September 2022 for registration and inclusion in the Register of Personal Assistants for Persons with Disabilities of the Secretariat-General for Social Solidarity and Combating Poverty of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, to definitively register in the Register, candidate Personal Assistants must have successfully completed a training program covering at least the following topics:
- issues relating to the ‘Personal Assistance’ institutional framework;
- rights of people with disabilities;
- basic information on disability, and how to provide support for each type of disability
How it works:
The persons concerned (people with disabilities) are assessed by special multidisciplinary committees. The assessment is individualized and takes into account the candidate’s social characteristics, the structure of his/her daily life, as well as his/her disability and functionality.
By decision of the Committee, each beneficiary is awarded a specific amount per month, which he/she may use to obtain Personal Assistance. To that end, a person with disability is given access to the Register of Personal Assistants in order to choose one or more Personal Assistants of his/her choice.
To cover the needs of the project:
- Appropriate training material was designed and developed for asynchronous distance learning to be provided to candidate Personal Assistants.
- A special training platform was set up to implement the distance learning program for personal assistants, to allow them to register in the relevant Register successfully and offer services to people with disabilities.
- Technical support is provided for the pilot and productive operation of the Specialized Information System intended to support the pilot implementation of the project. Moreover, support is also provided to users.
- Outreach and promotion activities are implemented in order to communicate the project objectives to the target population of the project.
- There is a Program help desk in operation (free of charge), which people may contact by calling 1555, as well as a website to provide information and necessary details to interested people.
Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family
The project was implemented thanks to cooperation between officials from the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family, ‘Information Society’ employees, and employees of the contractors chosen through a tender procedure to implement the necessary applications and provide project-related services.
People with disabilities from Attica took part in the first phase of the pilot program and will be provided with the Personal Assistant service for two years. People from other regions of Greece were added in the following phase and will be provided with the service for one year. Plans are being made for the service to cover the entire Greek territory.
There has been no qualitative evaluation so far, but beneficiaries said (see a proposed video): ‘The program creates a certain kind of trust between the Hellenic State, which offers you this possibility, and citizens, and this is very much appreciated, especially by people with disabilities.’
As regards the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family, the implementation of the project ensures compliance with Law 4837/2021, which introduced the term ‘Personal Assistant’, as it put into practice the national strategy for providing care to people with disabilities.
As regards ‘Information Society’, it is one of the numerous important digital transformation projects implemented by it and confirms its central role in modernizing the services provided by the Hellenic State to citizens in all sectors of society.
The most important benefits are for people with disabilities themselves, who, with support from the Hellenic State, can improve their own quality of life and that of their families, by being able to live independently and participate equally in all aspects of social, economic, political and cultural life.