Download report for 2008 (PDF format) - Telenor

CHANCE FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
December 2008 – December 2008 - More than 180 patients of the Special Hospital for Rehabilitation and
Prosthetics now have a Social Club, the only place which helps disabled people through activities aimed at
reinclusion in families and social life. At the Club, which occupies a renovated and equipped space, an expert team
will carry out educational and inclusive programs. All activities are designed with the aim of providing users with an
opportunity to learn and participate, as well as to socialize and relax.
The launching of the Social Club has been made possible by the Telenor Foundation, in cooperation with the Special
Hospital for Rehabilitation and Prosthetics and the Centre for Quality Education. On this occasion, which coincided
with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Stein Erik Vellan, the CEO of Telenor Serbia visited
the Special Hospital.
The Club beneficiaries learn computer skills, participate in employment and professional retraining counseling, and
learn about their rights, defined by the laws of the Republic of Serbia. Activities facilitating their reinclusion in social
life are important, as are activities contributing their independent functioning. Workshops for psychosocial support,
creative workshops, organized visits to theatres or cinemas, entertaining evenings, informal socializing and watching
television contribute to better integration and easier and more successful reinclusion in families and social life.
“There are more than 700,000 disabled persons in Serbia and only one institution specialized in their rehabilitation
- this Special Hospital. The waiting list is very long, while a shortage of staff and other resources for proper work is
evident. Thanks to the Telenor Foundation, conditions for more comprehensive rehabilitation of users, which has
previously included only physical rehabilitation and recuperation, have been established. What is often neglected is
the fact that the most difficult thing for people who suffered such trauma to accept their disadvantages and move
on. Love, strength and optimism are then necessary both for those who need support and those who are there to
provide this support,” says Biljana Vidaković Maksimović, the Director of the Special Hospital for Rehabilitation
and Prosthetics.
Users have promptly confirmed that they are highly interested in activities of the Social Club, and appreciation of
those who work with them on a daily basis is evident as well.
“In the year of equal opportunities, when one of the main objectives is to fight discrimination of disabled people, the
establishment of the Social Club is a good example of an approach to the affirmation of rights of disabled persons
in the long run. This initiative encourages disabled people to focus on their personal growth and provides them with
strength to equally participate in the society,” explains Jelena Čoko from the Centre for Quality Education.
18 Corporate Responsibility