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http://www.gip-vilnius.lt/

Global Initiative in Psychiatry

M.K.Oginksio 3, Vilnius, LT-10219
Tel.+370 5 271 57 60
Fax. +370 5 271 57 61
Vilnius@gip-global.org
aavramenko@gip-global.org
hvarniene@gip-global.org

Other national partners:

1. Vilnius Labor Exchange
2. Vilnius Psychosocial Rehabilitation Center
3. Vilnius university
4. "Aknystos Pensionatas" – social care home
5. Organization of mental health users "Giedra"
6. Vocational training center "Mes esame"
7. Welfare society for people with intellectual disabilities "Viltis"

DP Budget:

Action 1 Budget – 83.554 Lt
Action 2 Budget – 1.658.730 Lt

people with mental and intellectual disorders

Improve public policy and services in the area of employment of people with mental and intellectual disorders

Goals:

• To create and pilot employment methodology for the service providers working with the target group.
• To influence policy related to employment of people with mental and intellectual disorders.
• To inform society about mental health and vocational abilities of the target group (destigmatization).

Though in countries of Western Europe employment programs for mentally ill and disabled people have been developed and implemented for more than 15 years, nothing has been done in Lithuania in this respect.
There were several organizations conducting pilot projects aimed to employ mental ill people, but there were no joined efforts to make an impact on systematic level. So in the context of Lithuania, this project is very innovative.

Activities:

• Administration of the project
• Scientific research
• Training of professionals in new methods
• Establishment of the sheltered working places
• Direct work with clients
• Production of the employment methodology
• Regular meeting s with the international partners
• Economical argumentation for the supported employment
• Analysis of the laws and proposing changes
• Recommendation for the state structures
• Dissemination of information and publicity

Planned results:

• Up to 100 employed disabled individuals;
• Up to 50employed carers;
• 60 sheltered workshops;
• Development of the methodology for employment of persons with intellectual and mental disabilities and qualification requirements of job assistants;
• Functioning organization of job assistants;
• Maintenance of international co-operation.

• Reduced unemployment within the target group.
• Reduced stigmatization and negative approach on the part of employers.

New forms of assistance to mental patients

DPs involved

Netherlands

De omgekeerde weg. Reïntegratie van psychisch gehandicapten

France

INSERTION PROFESSIONNELLE ET HANDICAP PSYCHIQUE

Netherlands

Spoor 11 (tweede tranche)

Lithuania

Employment of people with mental and intellectual disorders

Activities:

- Developing new working methods. There is a strong need for new methods that will improve the results of the work of the different institutions. Furthermore there is a strong need to investigate the methods used in the different countries in order to find out which elements in these methods could be of common use.
- Developing new assessment instruments of clients. It was concluded that the assessment instruments that are available at this moment do not result in accurate descriptions of the current situation and the possibilities of clients.
- Developing structures to improve the co-operation between institutions in the field of rehabilitation and re-integration. All partners involved experience a lack of institutional co-operation with regard to their target group. The partners have noticed that this situation has a negative influence on their working process and on the results they are trying to achieve for and with their clients.
- Developing concrete and practical solutions to overcome obstacles and barriers, such as the integration of care, re-integration and rehabilitation, the integration of citizenship, social environment and labor, effective assessments
- Facilitating exchange of expertise among the partner organizations good practices concerning guidance and counseling, which will include techniques for assessing the specific needs of the individual, the 'best’ competences of staff involved in these processes and their training requirements
- Improving the involvement of clients, user organizations, relatives in the work of the institutions
- Destigmatization of patients with a psychiatric disorder
- Realizing a permanent relation with employers through the development of a recruitment model. Because the partners share the opinion that being active on the labor market is of utmost importance to their clients, the establishment of a permanent relation with employers and their organizations is essential for the success of the project.

Planned results:

The aim is to develop activities involving each of the partners in the DPs who all bring different areas of interest, experience and specialization. Those activities will result in:
- Individualized pathways: case studies of beneficiaries will be drafted to an agreed format and made available in the project languages on the institutional web sites.
- Concrete and practical solutions to obstacles and barriers: The tools used by each DP for awareness-raising of potential employers and their staff will be available to all partners in the form of a brochure.
- A number of different new tools with regard to assessment, working methods, recruitment of employers and involvement of clients.
- New methods for the improvement of the co-operation between different institutions.
- New ideas to contribute to the destigmatization of patients with a psychiatric disorder.