The Report includes two recommendations relevant to service delivery:
Recommendation 1: Enable access to all mainstream systems and services
People with disabilities have ordinary needs – for health and well-being, for economic and social security, to learn and develop skills […]. These needs can and should be met in mainstream programmes and services. Mainstreaming not only fulfils the human rights of persons with disabilities, it is also more effective.
Mainstreaming is the process by which Governments and other stakeholders ensure that persons with disabilities participate equally with others in any activity and service intended for the general public, such as education, health, employment, and social ser-vices. Barriers to participation need to be identified and removed, possibly requiring changes to laws, policies, institutions, and environments.
Mainstreaming requires a commitment at all levels, and needs to be considered across all sectors and built into new and existing legislation, standards, policies, strategies, and plans.
Adopting universal design and implementing reasonable accommodations are two important strategies. Mainstreaming also requires effective planning, adequate human resources, and suf-ficient financial investment – accompanied by specific measures such as targeted programmes and services to ensure that the diverse needs of people with disabilities are adequately met.
Recommendation 2: Invest in specific programmes and services for people with dis- abilities
In addition to mainstream services, some people with disabilities may require access to specific measures, such as rehabilitation, support services, or training. Rehabilitation – including assistive technologies such as wheelchairs, hearing aids […] – improves func-tioning and independence. A range of well-regulated assistance and support services in the community can meet needs for care, enabling people to live independently and to participate in the economic, social, and cultural lives of their communities. Vocational rehabilitation and training can open labour market opportunities.
While there is a need for more services, there is also a need for better, more acces-sible, flexible, integrated, and well-coordinated multidisciplinary services, particularly at times of transition such as between child and adult services. Existing programmes and ser-vices need to be reviewed to assess their performance and make changes to improve their coverage, effectiveness, and efficiency. The changes should be based on sound evidence, appropriate in terms of culture and other local contexts, and tested locally.
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✓ Provide to persons with disabilities information and education on how to avoid, recognize and report instances of exploitation, violence and abuse (art. 16);
✓ Ensure access to age-appropriate infor-mation, reproductive and family plan-ning education (art. 23);
✓ Provide early and comprehensive infor-mation to children with disabilities and their families to ensure that children with disabilities have equal rights with respect to family life (art. 23).
Training
Article 4 underlines the importance of training. The State is required to promote the training of professionals and staff work-ing with persons with disabilities in relation to the rights in the Convention so as to pro-vide better assistance and services.
The Convention promotes training in the broader community, for instance of pro-fessionals as well as of persons with disabil-ities. For the former, it promotes:
✓ Training for stakeholders on accessibility issues (art. 9)
✓ Training for those working in the field of administration of justice, including police and prison staff (art. 13)
✓ Training in mobility skills to specialist staff working with persons with disabil-ities (art. 20)
✓ Training to professionals and staff who work at all levels of education (includ-ing disability awareness and the use of appropriate augmentative and alterna-tive modes of communication, educa-tional techniques and materials to sup-port persons with disabilities) (art. 24)
D. Awareness-raising and training
Awareness-raising, including training, is another important implementation measure. As disability is the result of the interaction between impairment and an unwelcoming environ-ment—environment refers not only to the phys-ical environment but also to unwelcoming atti-tudes and negative or inaccessible information in society—awareness-raising and training about the Convention are essential if the envi-ronment is to be changed.
Awareness-raising
Article 8 is specifically devoted to awareness-raising, setting out a whole range of measures that State parties should take, in particular to:
✓ Raise awareness throughout society, including the family, to foster respect for rights
✓ Combat stereotypes, prejudices and harmful practices
✓ Promote awareness of the capabilities and contributions of persons with dis- abilities.
This can be done through public aware-ness campaigns, the education system, the media and awareness-training programmes.
Other articles require State parties to provide information to persons with disabil-ities, which is also a form of awareness-rais-ing. For example, States undertake to:
✓ Provide accessible information to per-sons with disabilities about mobility aids, devices and assistive technologies as well as other forms of assistance, sup-port services and facilities (art. 4);
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✓ Training of health professionals and the promulgation of ethical standards for public and private health care (art. 25)
✓ Training for professionals and staff work-ing in habilitation and rehabilitation ser-vices (art. 26)
✓ Training through international coopera-tion (art. 32).
Training for the latter—beyond the right to education itself—is referred to as follows:
✓ Training in mobility skills (art. 20)
✓ Vocational and continuing training (arts. 24 and 27)
✓ Training to ensure access to assistance by persons with disabilities and their families living in situations of poverty (art. 28)
✓ Training so that persons with disabili-ties have an opportunity to organize, develop and participate in disability-spe-cific sporting and recreational activities (art. 30).
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