Impact of Community-based Rehabilitation on Persons with Different Disabilities

There are some barriers that persons with different kinds of impairments commonly face, and there are also some impairment-specific barriers. Disaggregated data are needed to assess the impact of different CBR activities on different groups of persons with disabilities. Purpose: This article assesses the impact of CBR on key variables linked to the five domains of the CBR Matrix, on 4 groups of persons with disabilities - visual, hearing and speech, physical and intellectual disabilities. Method: A questionnaire survey was carried out involving 2,332 persons with disabilities, in a random stratified sample of villages covered by a CBR programme, in 9 sub-districts of Karnataka state (India) and in a control area. Data were collected pertaining to different activities in the lives of persons with disabilities. Through a participatory approach involving CBR workers and DPO representatives, some key indicators were identified to assess the impact of CBR on the five domains of the CBR Matrix - health, education, livelihood, social participation and empowerment. Results: Among all the 4 groups of persons with disabilities, the CBR programme was found to have had a positive impact across all the five domains of the CBR Matrix. However, there was no uniform impact on different variables among the 4 groups; different groups of persons with disabilities benefited differently from different activities. Persons with physical disabilities seemed to benefit in more areas compared to persons in the other groups. Conclusions: CBR programmes can have a positive impact on persons with visual, hearing and speech, physical and intellectual disabilities. Disaggregated data can help CBR programmes to identify groups of persons who benefit less from specific activities and adopt strategies to improve their participation