This report was commissioned by the steering committee overseeing the establishment of Masad Disabilities – a strategic partnership between the Government of Israel and JDC-Israel aimed at developing and establishing services for community-dwelling adults with disabilities. The report includes comprehensive information about the population of people with disabilities and subgroups within that population and provides decision-makers with a thorough basis for the development of services for them.
The findings and conclusions in the report are based on an analysis of earlier studies and surveys and on in-depth interviews with policymakers, service providers, representatives of organizations for people with disabilities, researchers and academics, and others.
The topics examined in the report include:
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Information about the percentages of people with disabilities of various levels and the increase in their numbers in recent years and about the rapid increase in the number of recipients of disability pensions during that time
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Socio-demographic characteristics of the population of people with disabilities as a whole and of subgroups within that population who are recipients of disability pensions
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Characteristics and needs of special populations with disabilities – Arabs, women, immigrants, those in transition to old age, people with multiple disabilities, young people in transition to adulthood, parents with disabilities, and people with acquired disabilities – and issues pertaining to the development of services for them. The study also examined the characteristics and needs of families caring for people with a disability and development of services for them
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Computer and Internet use by people with disabilities in Israel and abroad.
The report also summarizes the issues that were brought up in interviews conducted with a large number of professionals in senior positions, representatives of organizations for people with disabilities, academics, and others. The interviews focused on issues relating to the need to develop services for people with disabilities and on priority issues that have yet to be addressed or that have not been addressed adequately by the service system.
The report will assist planners and developers of the social and health services for people with disabilities, as well as those working to improve the situation of the disabled and integrate them into the community.