MLSD Minister: Implementing the maximum preventive measures in rehabilitation centers and closing the non-compliant

11-06-2020

Based on the decisions of the Coordination Committee, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, may God protect him, and the presentation of the National Medical Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus (COVID‑19), chaired by His Excellency Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Health, His Excellency the Minister of Labour and Social Development, Mr Jameel bin Mohammed Ali Humaidan, issued an administrative circular regarding the resumption of activities, programmes and individual rehabilitation sessions in private centres working in the field of disability, in accordance with precautionary controls and requirements to ensure the provision of a safe and healthy working environment for students and staff at these rehabilitation centres, effective from 14 June 2020. The administrative circular emphasised the need for private rehabilitation centres to adhere to the Ministry of Health's guidelines for daily disinfection and sterilisation of the centres. This includes classrooms, rehabilitation facilities, equipment, educational tools, administrative offices and employee devices. It also requires the provision of necessary disinfectants at the entrance to the rehabilitation centre and throughout its various areas. It is also necessary to maintain the cleanliness and ventilation of the centre, ensure that waste is removed daily and disposed of safely, ensure that toilets are clean after each use, and encourage good health practices, especially handwashing, as prescribed. In compliance with sterilisation regulations and safety precautions, centres must allocate individual materials and equipment for each beneficiary. They must also sterilise all shared tools, equipment and devices before and after use. Social distancing requirements must be adhered to, and the temperature of all centre staff, including administrative and rehabilitation staff, as well as beneficiaries, must be measured daily. Anyone with a temperature above 37.5 degrees Celsius is prohibited from entering. According to the established requirements, all employees of the centres, administrative and rehabilitation bodies, beneficiaries and visitors are also required to wear protective masks and gloves, with the necessity of quickly disclosing by calling (444) when suspected cases show signs and symptoms indicating the possibility of infection with the Coronavirus or it is believed that they have been exposed to contact with an existing case of the virus, and it is strictly forbidden to provide light meals and drinks to students while they are in the rehabilitation centre. The administrative circular specified the controls and requirements for the rehabilitation process, emphasising the importance of organising the rehabilitation sessions for the beneficiaries registered at the centre so that the number of students does not exceed one beneficiary per specialist trainer, while ensuring that the trainer's protective mask and gloves are changed with each beneficiary. Attendance is optional for students who wish to attend under the current circumstances, while encouraging the continuation of virtual rehabilitation and enhancing it through various means, with the possibility of combining classroom and virtual rehabilitation according to what is determined by the type of programme, while adhering to the terms and conditions specified in the circulars issued and organised in this regard. All rehabilitation centres will be randomly inspected periodically by inspectors from the Ministry of Labour and Social Development to ensure that the centre adheres to health requirements and regulations governing the rehabilitation process. If any rehabilitation centre fails to comply, it will be fined, closed, and the necessary legal action will be taken. In this context, His Excellency the Minister of Labour and Social Development emphasised that people with disabilities are of very great interest to the esteemed government, which is keen to provide means of social protection, healthcare and rehabilitation. In the same context, he praised the efforts of Bahraini talents operating private centres working in the field of disability, and the advanced level of services provided by these centres, which contribute to creating a suitable environment for people with disabilities, facilitating their integration into society and their effective participation in the comprehensive development process, and their involvement in public formal education and educational and training institutions. Humaidan explained that the Ministry of Labour and Social Development is committed to continuing to support the efforts of civil society organisations to provide the best sustainable social and development services, particularly those concerned with people with disabilities. This stems from a desire to strengthen the community partnership system between various governmental, civil, and private institutions, and to consolidate the principle of human and social solidarity among all segments and groups of society, particularly during this exceptional period.