The Special Needs Care project provides volunteers the opportunity to
motivate and enrich the lives of these people living with disabilities.
Due to the social stigma and lack of governmental support, there are
many families in Romania who are unable to properly care for family
members (young children and adults) with mental and physical
disabilities such as Autism, Cerebral Palsy and Down syndrome.
Volunteers will be expected to assist in the planning of games and
educational activities for children and adults in special needs
centers, while also caring for them. For those with physical therapy
training or experience, your tasks can include assisting with treatment,
physiotherapy and rehabilitation for the children and adults. While
some basic resources are available, volunteers will be required to use
their initiative to develop activities and bringing resources to assist
with pre-planned activities is encouraged.
The Special Needs Care
project is great for volunteers who enjoy working with children and
adults outside of the classroom. Strong organizational skills and the
ability to improvise will be an added bonus on this project as providing
care to children and adults with disabilities, with limited resources,
can be challenging. However, the children and adults are incredibly
enthusiastic and you will receive big smiles in return. Volunteers must
be qualified in Special Education and/or Physical Therapies, or
currently completing studies in these fields. It’s important to note
that the Special Needs Care project requires volunteers to participate
for a minimum duration of 2 weeks.