Instytucjonalne wsparcie rodziny z osobą niepełnosprawną

Abstract

The issue of disability should be considered in the context of the family, for it is the family that accompanies the disabled person from the very beginning. It becomes his or her best and surest support, in the economic, psychological, and spiritual dimensions. Concentration, however, on the individual that is most in need causes the whole family system to fail its function with time. Limitations that result from the fact of disability are real threats that the family may become marginalised or even eliminated from social life. The family is not able to overcome crisis on its own, thus supportive institutions and organisations play an essential role. The State Rehabilitation Fund for the Disabled (Pol. PFRON), urban and rural social work centres are leading institutions in supporting families with the disabled persons. In order to obtain aid from PFRON, however, one should be resourceful, well-educated, and well-off. Now social support centres concentrate only on those families that are the poorest, uneducated, and live in villages and small towns. It follows from research that families are considerably supported by institutions, although they only to a small degress satisfy the needs of the families under study.