General Director of Services for Persons with Disabilities and Elderly, Spc. Dr. Orhan KOÇ visited Antalya Autism Day Care Rehabilitation and Family Counselling Centre and made observations.

Speaking with individuals with autism and their families in Antalya Autism Day Care Rehabilitation Center Spc. Dr. Orhan KOÇ stated that they have updated their care service models since 2002 for a Turkey where citizens with disabilities in need of care are not helpless, in this context, in order to relieve self-sacrificing families who devote their lives to their children with autism, they have expanded the Day Care Services Model, which is included in the Autism Action Plan, with some facilitating practices, there is legislation that prioritizes employment of persons with autism in sheltered workplaces, they are working to place them in suitable places for their skills by making a special match for the employment of individuals with autism.

Spc. Dr. Orhan KOÇ: Turkey is an Exemplary Country with Services and Policies Developed for Children with Autism

General Director of Services for Persons with Disabilities and Elderly, Spc. Dr. Orhan KOÇ stated that, as the Ministry and General Directorate, they attach importance to prioritizing individuals with autism in every field from health to education, from working life to social life, and that they want Turkey to become an exemplary country with the services and policies they have developed for children with autism, Spc. Dr. Orhan KOÇ said that in Afyonkarahisar, Antalya, Aydın, Istanbul, Mersin, Muş, Sakarya and Samsun, there are eight institutions of which 4 are boarding and 4 are day care services providing inpatient and day care services to individuals with autism.

Individuals with Disabilities Going to the Institution and Accompanying Families are Picked Up from Their Homes and Dropped to Their Homes by Shuttle at the End of the Training

Antalya Autism Day Care Rehabilitation and Family Counselling Centre, which was opened with the Ministry's approval dated 03.10.2019 and numbered 1533204, for the day care needs of individuals with disabilities, provides services to persons with autism spectrum disorder within the scope of specialization studies by the Ministry’s approval dated 06.04.2021 and numbered 805481.

Antalya Autism Day Care Rehabilitation and Family Counselling Centre Directorate is located in a closed area of 1500 square meters. 350 square meters of the centre is used as training workshops. In the centre, there are 3 workshops and 1 gym together with the administrative building. The centre also has various training areas where rehabilitation services and educational vocational courses in different branches are provided. Families of persons with disabilities can be with their children, and they can contribute to the family economy by developing areas that support production and market products by receiving training in these workshops.

In the Centre, where active training is given between 09.00 and 16.00 on weekdays in the field of wood painting, visual arts and rehabilitation sports, food and beverage are afforded by the institution. Individuals with disabilities going to the institution and accompanying families are picked up from their homes and dropped to their homes by shuttle at the end of the training.

In Antalya Day Care Rehabilitation and Family Counselling Centre, psychological counselling services are provided by going home for families who cannot come to the institution as part of psychological support.