Living assistance for people with disabilities

• Author: Claudia Boghicevici
• Pages: 234-248

Living assistance for people with disabilities

Lecturer Claudia BOGHICEVICI

1

Abstract

The living assistance of the disabled people involves using a pet to help the

person in need to overcome their disabilities. The living assistance for people with visual

impairments through guide dogs has become a new concern for the decision-makers in

Romania. This paper aims to trace and extract those elements that may favor the

development of this type of assistance in Romania as well, from the experience of other

states in the use of guide dogs. The research articles in the field show that certain

elements of the legislative context are necessary for a good implementation of the living

assistance programs. But they are not enough either. The high cost of guide dogs training

programs can be a serious inconvenient in this direction. This is where specialty medical

literature comes to our attention. It is the one that complements the normative study and

provides us with medical research that highlights a number of predictors of the guide dog

training success. Applying the results of these research ca n greatly reduce the costs o f

training programs, thus facilitating the development of this form of assistance.

Keywords: live assistance, guide dog, legal framework, predictors of success.

JEL Classification: H83, K23

1. Introduction

Concern about the support of blind people in Romania through dedicated

public policies and national assistance programs is a recent one. Compared to

other European countries, Romania is at a considerable distance back to this chap-

ter. For example, in the UK, there is an association that has been operating since

1931 and which specializes in training and providing live dog assistance services

(Guide Dog). The number of guides dogs in the UK is estimated at 5000.

In Romania, Parliament adopted in 2015 a draft law that provides for the

funding of living assistance programs within programs of national interest for

persons with disabilities. The Government of Romania also announced the launch

of a pilot program to increase the number of guild dogs.

One of the main obstacles to the development of living assistance pro-

grams is the funding and persuasion of governmental authorities for the allocation

of medium and long-term budget resources for the training of guiding dogs. This

is done through a complex process of identifying dogs with potential, training and

accommodation along with the beneficiary.

In the context of this recent openness to finding these types of support, it

is the medical field and scientific research that can support and encourage this

1

Claudia Boghicevici - „Aurel Vlaicus” University of Arad, Romania, contact_cb@yahoo.com.