The Use of Developmental Rehabilitation Services. Comparison between Bedouins and Jews in the South of Israel

The Scientific World Journal, Jul 2018

Some communities have peripheral zones inhabited by persons with a different culture than the majority of the general population, such as the Aboriginals in Australia, the Native Americans in the U.S. and Canada, the Eskimos in Lapland, and the Bedouins in Israel. These citizens are not receiving the same medical or rehabilitation services as the citizens of the metropolitan areas due to the fact that health and welfare programs are not adapted to their unique needs. At the Soroka University Medical Center in Beer-Sheva, Israel, the health and rehabilitation services have a very large and heterogeneous catch-up population serving most of the south of Israel. The purpose of this study was to look at the utilization and the number of appointments for child rehabilitation services by the Bedouin population compared to the general population in the south of Israel at the Zusman Child Development Center (CDC).The records of appointments to the CDC between the years 1995–1999 inclusive were studied and we randomly chose to limit the study to January, April, July, and October of each year, and randomly chose the daily records of nine therapists, three from each discipline (occuptional therapy [OT], physical therapy [PT], and speech and language therapy [SLT]). There were 8,504 appointments during these 4 months of the years 1995–1999, 2,255 of which were for Bedouin and 6,249 for Jewish children. Noncompliance with therapy appointments (NCTA) for the same period for both the Bedouins (31%) and Jewish children (26%), with a significant difference between the two populations, was noted. Of all the Jewish childrens’ appointments, the percentage of all three services was similar: 33% to PT, 38% to OT, and 29% to SLT, but for the Bedouin children, the percentage between the three services was significantly different: 62% to PT, 34% to OT, and 3% to SLT. These results seem to indicate that the Bedouin families prefer the PT and OT over the SLT. Our results enhanced the need for planning a model for supplying health services adapted to clients coming from different cultures. According to this model, we need to take into consideration the cultural differences, the accessibility to rehabilitation services, and the economical impact on the family; all in all, to give a better solution to the patient with special needs.

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The Use of Developmental Rehabilitation Services. Comparison between Bedouins and Jews in the South of Israel

Research Article TheScientificWorldJOURNAL 1537-744X The Use of Developmental Rehabilitation Services. Comparison between Bedouins and Jews in the South of Israel Hasia Lubetzky 2 Shifra Shvarts 1 Joav Merrick 0 2 Gideon Vardi 2 Aharon Galil 2 0 National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Office of the Medical Director, Division for Mental Retardation, Ministry of Social Affairs , Jerusalem , Israel 1 Department of Health Systems Management, Division of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences and School of Management, Ben Gurion University of the Negev , Beer- Sheva 2 Zusman Child Development Center, Division of Pediatrics, Soroka University Medical Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev , Beer-Sheva Some communities have peripheral zones inhabited by persons with a different culture than the majority of the general population, such as the Aboriginals in Australia, the Native Americans in the U.S. and Canada, the Eskimos in Lapland, and the Bedouins in Israel. These citizens are not receiving the same medical or rehabilitation services as the citizens of the metropolitan areas due to the fact that health and welfare programs are not adapted to their unique needs. At the Soroka University Medical Center in Beer-Sheva, Israel, the health and rehabilitation services have a very large and heterogeneous catch-up population serving most of the south of Israel. The purpose of this study was to look at the utilization and the number of appointments for child rehabilitation services by the Bedouin population compared to the general population in the south of Israel at the Zusman Child Development Center (CDC). The records of appointments to the CDC between the years 1995-1999 inclusive were studied and we randomly chose to limit the study to January, April, July, and October of each year, and randomly chose the daily records of nine therapists, three from each discipline (occuptional therapy [OT], physical therapy [PT], and speech and language therapy [SLT]). There were 8,504 appointments during these 4 months of the years 19951999, 2,255 of which were for Bedouin and 6,249 for Jewish children. Noncompliance with therapy appointments (NCTA) for the same period for both the Bedouins (31%) and Jewish children (26%), with a significant difference between the two populations, was noted. Of all the Jewish childrens' appointments, the percentage of all three services was similar: 33% to PT, 38% to OT, and 29% to SLT, but for the Bedouin children, the percentage between the three services was significantly different: 62% to PT, 34% to OT, and 3% to SLT. These results seem to indicate that the Bedouin families prefer the PT and OT over the SLT. Our results enhanced the need for planning a model for supplying health services adapted to clients coming from different cultures. According to this model, we need to - take into consideration the cultural differences, the accessibility to rehabilitation services, and the economical impact on the family; all in all, to give a better solution to the patient with special needs. DOMAINS: child health and human development, medical care, medical research, nursing, behavior, sociology INTRODUCTION The health services provided to insured citizens — in countries like Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the U.S. — are among the most progressive in the world. There are also many laws defining the rights of the handicapped or disabled with the obligations of the government. Such rights emerged from the concept that all citizens, including the disabled, deserve welfare from the government and society as a whole has responsibility. There are some communities in the peripheral zones of several places who have a different culture from the majority of the population, such as the Aboriginals in Australia, the Native Americans in the U.S. and Canada, the Eskimos in Lapland, and the Bedouins in Israel. These citizens are not receiving the same medical or rehabilitation services as the citizens of the metropolitan areas due to the fact that health and welfare programs are not adapted to their unique needs[ 1,2,3 ]. Apparently, everyone approaches the health services when in need of them, but according to Helman[4], people use these services only when they are within reach, within their financial capacity, and within cultural acceptance. At the Soroka University Medical Center in Beer-Sheva, Israel, the health and rehabilitation services have a very large and heterogeneous catch-up population serving most of the south of Israel. The citizens come from many ethnic, cultural, and religious groups. The two main groups are Jews, who are the majority in Israel, and the Bedouins, who are about 20% of the citizens in the south region[5]. Most of the Jews using the rehabilitation services come from the cities and major villages in the south, while in some communities, the citizens use local facilities and the connection with the (...truncated)


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Hasia Lubetzky, Shifra Shvarts, Joav Merrick, Gideon Vardi, Aharon Galil. The Use of Developmental Rehabilitation Services. Comparison between Bedouins and Jews in the South of Israel, The Scientific World Journal, 4, DOI: 10.1100/tsw.2004.18