20 / 72
18
When necessary, the work of the ECI specialist is
supported by a multidisciplinary team, including
physical therapist, speech therapist, neonatologist,
and others. The ECI specialist actively interacts with
other specialists in order to respond to the complex
needs of the child.
The teaching materials are specialised play items,
as well as common household items such as bowls,
boxes, balls, beans, and many other objects from
the home environment that can be used as support
materials for training and skills development.
This early childhood intervention is the first integrated
social-health service that is operating at the national
level, and it is in sharp contrast to the traditional medi-
cal model that focuses on the child’s deficits.
FUNDING:
Initial funding from the Open
Society Foundation
In the period 2012 to 2015, the Open Society Foun-
dation, with additional co-financing from For Our
Children Foundation, funded the programme with the
sum of $181,350. Currently, there is no state funding
or financial standard for the ECI services. There is
funding available under a national EU-funded project,
which will end in 2018, and state funding is expected
to begin at that time. However, the direct beneficiaries
of EU funding are municipalities and the service cen-
tres managed by them. NGOs need to rely to other
sources of funding.
OUTLOOK:
Continue to grow and improve
For the period 2015 to 2017, the focus of the Foun-
dation’s work will remain on early childhood develop-
ment. The organization will continue working in the
same locations, trying to reach more children. Recent-
ly, the organization launched a specialised study of
the impact of its services on children, seeking to
measure the effectiveness of the services and to ana-
lyse the achievements and progress of the children.
Despite the progress made, there are still problems
to overcome. One of these is the rigidity of the health
system and its reluctance to recognize the impor-
tance of integrated social and health services, such
as Early Childhood Intervention, as well as its ten-
dency to view the Foundation’s work as competition
rather than as a supporting medical service. Another
issue is the lack of state recognition for the need for
early childhood development services and for financ-
ing them through the state budget.
The effectiveness of investment in early childhood
development is seen through the visible differences in
children who have been a part of an early intervention
programme, both in the short and long term. They are
more successful in school, their social and emotional
adjustment is better, they experience fewer problems
with the law, their physical health is better, and they
are more able to find employment.
FACTS AND FIGURES:
Steady progress over the years
• The For Our Children Foundation’s ECI
programme has supported 352 children (152
girls, 200 boys) in the following age groups:
Up to 1 year: 145
From 1 to 3 years: 169
From 3 to 4 years *: 41
*Children older than four years are includ-
ed in the programme if they joined the
service comparatively late or if continuing
support is necessary in order to develop
the child’s full potential.
• The total number of Foundation employees
is 74, five of whom formed the ECI team.
• The Foundation has 22 support staff, a sig-
nificant increase over the last three years.
• Five members of the staff conduct train-
ings for children and their parents, for
other employees of the organization, and
for external clients.
Hydrotherapy session: Parents are encouraged to work with
the strengths of the children and with their abilities.