Community Based Rehabilitation
After living in Central Asia for a year and engaging closely with the local community, I noticed a significant gap in health knowledge. Many people would quickly panic in medical situations simply because they did not know how to respond. For example, if someone fainted, bystanders often felt helpless, unsure of what to do.
Together with our healthcare team, including two nurses, we began thinking about how we could support the community. We wanted to provide knowledge that would not only reduce fear and anxiety but also bring people together and create something sustainable. That is when the idea of a first aid training programme was born—practical, engaging, and easy to replicate.
Since launching the training, we have been invited to different community groups several times, including those for mothers of children with special needs, kindergarten teachers, and mixed groups of people from various backgrounds. The response has been incredible. The interaction during training sessions has been lively, and the hands-on practice has led to a lot of fun and engagement. By the end of each session, people were exchanging phone numbers, strengthening community connections.
One of the most memorable moments for me happened during a break when a participant asked, “Why are you doing this? Why did you come all the way from your home country?” This question was a turning point—an opportunity to share the deep love in our hearts that motivates us to serve.
Through this training, we are not only equipping people with life-saving skills but also fostering a sense of community, trust, and openness. It has been a privilege to see how something as simple as first aid can bring people together and open doors for deeper conversations.
Truth Boost
In spring 2023 we partnered with another NGO. Their local staff were running a centre in the old city for children with learning disabilities.
They wanted to integrate children with physical disabilities and asked our physical therapist (PT) and our occupational therapist (OT) to work specifically with these children.
Receiving Help, Taking Responsibility
Amantur lives on a small farm in Kyrgyzstan that is quite remote, lying between two villages.
A Community United for Mubariz
As part of our partner’s project on accessibility, the team launched a district-wide assessment in Rudaki. Here they met a teacher who was homeschooling a 9-year-old boy named Mubariz,
Promoting Inclusion
An annual conference for mainstream school teachers and school transition support services helped promote inclusion in local communities.
Amina, a young girl with speech and cognitive delays,
Each Child is Valuable
“I’ve learnt from you that each child is created by God and valuable, and I want to do my best to love and raise her like you would” she said
Perseverance Brings Progress
Now Rustam can express himself, he is socializing with his peers, and he is participating in the cultural events of the organization. Rustam is ready to go to school!
New Life for Abrahim
Nine-year-old Abrahim, who lives with cerebral palsy, joined the horse therapy program earlier this year together with his grandparents. When they first arrived, his grandfather, Eleman,
Growing in Strength and Love
When our team first met Gulnar, a six-year-old girl diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP) and a suspected case of CHARGE syndrome, she was unable to walk or communicate.
The View Changes
After a couple of sessions on the back of a gentle horse, Jamal now rides with a smile on his face.
Partnership for Change
Both organizations continue to work in partnership with the mom and her son and we are seeing positive changes in their lives.
Hope Stored in His Heart
Most of all we sense that Haitham now has hope stored in his heart that he did not have before.
An Event for Mothers
“This is for me?” One of the ladies asked, looking at the beautiful hand-held mirror she just decorated. Her question is perhaps not surprising. For these village women,
Training for Local Health Care Professionals
Kangaroo care and skin to skin contact between mother and newborn baby – these are vital practices unheard of in the local Kazakh neonatology hospitals.
Professionalism Produces Results
Practical training like this empowers therapists to be more professional and to achieve better results in their treatment.
Small Achievements
Since birth, Nurdoolot has lived with a serious condition: intracranial pressure. Doctors discovered a cyst in his brain that is pressing on the area responsible for movement and vision.
Mothers’ Meeting
Many mothers of children with disabilities live in deep isolation.
Not Just Playing Around
This child was 2 ½ years old and had never walked alone before!
Showing a New Way
The staff helped Aygul and her colleagues better understand the effects of CP on the children and ways to increase the children’s mobility.
Trust is Built Through Peer Groups
This group of four men became eager to meet each other and friendship was formed.
Sing Hello
“Fahid, it is your turn to sing!” Our volunteers encourage and then, with a little bit of prompting, Fahid begins to sing for us.