Mirtha Jiménez Ledezma, Clinical Psychologist at SIMAJ, explaines what the Province of Latin America does to foster education for children with disabilities.
In Bolivia, 94% of children with disabilities are not enrolled in the mainstream educational system, and are thus excluded from the educational setting. These children live in a state of constant exclusion and inequality and are the victims of discrimination throughout the country, which leads to the violation of their human rights in social, educational, labor and family environments. Most people with disabilities live below the poverty line, so they cannot access health care or other specialized care services they may require.
Servicios Integrados Maria Josefa Recio, SIMAJ, (Maria Josefa Recio Integrated Services), was founded on May 25, 2021 in Cochabamba.It is a new service offered to Bolivian society, and is dedicated to the care of children with disabilities of different types and degrees.
The goal of SIMAJ is to provide a specialized external Early Stimulation service, integral rehabilitation and outpatient consultations to children and people with disabilities who have a family. The service embraces a Humanist-Christian conception of the person, welcoming everyone as brothers and sisters without any distinction on the grounds of race, culture, religion, ideology or gender, enlightened and strengthened by the hospitaller charism.
We currently serve 27 children with intellectual, physical and motor disabilities, Down syndrome and autism; we provide a quality service through early stimulation, integral rehabilitation, outpatient psychology and physical therapy, with the support of parents, and on the basis of hospitaller values.
For children with disabilities, early stimulation is essential for integral rehabilitation, with the aim of developing physical and mental abilities at the highest level. This is achieved especially if the early stimulation program is delivered in the first years of life, when better results are obtained.
Although this is a slow process which requires patience and perseverance, we experience the joy of seeing children walk, increase their vocabulary, and even relate better to other people, in the case of children with autism.
For children with disabilities, early stimulation is essential for integral rehabilitation, with the aim of developing physical and mental abilities at the highest level. This is achieved especially if the early stimulation program is delivered in the first years of life, when better results are obtained.
Although this is a slow process which requires patience and perseverance, we experience the joy of seeing children walk, increase their vocabulary, and even relate better to other people, in the case of children with autism.
In SIMAJ, early stimulation is provided individually and in groups. On the basis of the initial diagnosis, we develop a specific work plan for each child, using systematically and in sequence a set of techniques and activities in the following different areas:
The Maria Josefa Recio Integrated Services social work is a pioneer in Cochabamba in the area of outpatient services specifically targeting children with disabilities. It currently has a Day Center program which provides early stimulation to children with disabilities, but an expansion of services is planned with occupational therapy activities, outpatient consultation of different disciplines, as well as complementary and residential services.