State of the World's Children 2013 - Unicef

A strategy for intervention on behalf of children identified as
having a disability should be incorporated in the assessment
from the earliest stages of planning.
weekends, which was convenient
for children and their
families.
It is also important to adapt
the composition of the core
assessment team and the type
of tools used to local capacity.
At the time of the study, both
Cambodia and Bhutan faced a
shortage of qualified assessors.
In Cambodia this was overcome
by employing a mobile assessment
team, while in Bhutan
emphasis was put on training
mid-level professionals. The
availability of specialists cannot
be taken for granted – in
the case of Cambodia, the lead
hearing specialist was brought
in from abroad.
Assessment tools – questionnaires
and tests – should be
locally validated and culturally
appropriate. Careful attention
must be paid to language. One
of the challenges encountered
in Cambodia pertained to
translating assessment instruments
from English to Khmer,
and especially finding linguistic
equivalents for the concepts
of impairment and disability.
The diagnostic assessment
form used in the Cambodian
study was revised to suit the
former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia and the local
Chuturich test was utilized for
the psychological component
of the assessment.
Assessment leads
to action
With assessment comes the
potential for immediate intervention.
In Cambodia, some
children who screened positive
for hearing impairment were
found to have an ear infection
or a build-up of ear wax.
This limited their hearing and
in many cases also their participation
in school, but, once
identified, their conditions were
easily treated and more serious
secondary infections and
longer-term impairments were
thus prevented.
Assessment can also aid
awareness raising and spark
change even while the processes
of collecting and analysing
data are still under way. When
clinical assessments in Bhutan
showed a higher incidence
of mild cognitive disabilities
among children from poorer
households and those whose
mothers had less education,
the government decided to
focus on early childhood development
and childcare services
in rural areas, where income
and education levels are lower.
And in the former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, findings
that revealed unequal
access to education have
spurred plans to improve
school participation and fight
discrimination against children
with disabilities.
A strategy for intervention on
behalf of children identified as
having a disability should be
incorporated in the assessment
from the earliest stages of planning.
Such a strategy should
include a mapping of the available
services, the development
of referral protocols and the
preparation of informative
materials for families on how
to adjust children’s surroundings
to enhance functioning
and participation in home and
community life.
MEASURING CHILD DISABILITY
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