Rehabilitation Of Disabled Civilians Outlined

Press, Volume C, Issue 29626, 23 September 1961, Page 5

Rehabilitation Of Disabled Civilians Outlined

The Government's plans for assisting the rehabilitation of disabled civilians are outlined in a statement to "The Press” by the Health Department. The statement is in answer to a letter to the editor from a correspondent signing himself "Action Needed.”

“In answer to your correspondent, ‘Action Needed,’ there is an interdepartmental committee on civilian rehabilitation,” says the department’s statement. “It was formed in 1954 and has representatives from the Social Security, Labour, Health and Education Departments, Treasury, the Rehabilitation and Workers’ Compensation Boards, the State Fire Office and the British Medical Association.

“The committee’s representatives particularly those from the Social Security Department—have done much hard work for civilian rehabilitation. The ‘sheltered employment’ scheme is an example of its achievements. “This scheme goes back to June, 1960, when the committee’s last full meeting was held. A working party then set up to investigate giving sheltered employment to disabled civilians included representatives of Labour, Health and Social Security Departments and the Disabled Servicemen’s Re-establish-ment League. “On the working party’s recommendations after periodic meetings, Cabinet approved the sheltered employment scheme for disabled civilians and also a pilot occupational workshop scheme in Wellington. ’ “ ‘Action Needed’ may not have seen the widelypublicised press statement in which the Minister of Social Security (Mr Shelton) announced the Government’s decision on June 3 last.

“Mr Shelton said the experience of the league, in training disabled servicemen and, more recently, civilians, made it 'the logical agency for the Government to work through in establishing facilities for sheltered employment. For the more severely handicapped person with a lower productive level, it was proposed to establish a pilot occupational workshop at the league’s Wellington branch for an experimental term of one year. This would serve as a guide to the Government in determining whether simi-. lar workshops should be set up in other centres. “It would also be said that a national panel of rehabilita. tion meets regularly in Wellington to consider cases referred by local panels for civilian rehabilitation training—a scheme which has been operating for some years. The panel, which likewise considers cases for sheltered employment, ha* representatives from the Labour, Health and Social Security Departments and the Disabled Servicemen’s Re-establishment League.” The letter from “Action Needed” reads:— “When Dr. G, A. Q. *Lennane, Director of Physical Medicine, told a mental health seminar in Christchurch that ‘disabled adults were discharged after hospital treatment to flounder in their difficulties,’ he drew attention to something that needs urgent action. However, there will probably be years of talk before any effective action. I understand that there is an interdepartmental committee on civilian rehabilitation. Can you discover when it was appointed, who it comprises, and how many meetings it has held? The Social Security Department is openly suspicious of attempts at rehabilitation where the disabled person cannot work full and regular hours? and where selfemployment is involved. I know that they have turned down rehabilitation programmes. including treatment, based on a beneficiary being prepared to attempt to earn the cost of treatment and access to treatment.”