PaísDI: Feasibility and effectiveness of an advocacy program for adults with intellectual disability and their stakeholders' groups in Chile

• Published in: Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities Vol. 35; no. 2; pp. 633 - 638
• Main Authors: Tenorio, Marcela, Aparicio, Andrés, Arango, Paulina Sofía, Fernández, Ana Karen, Fergusson, Alfonso, Turull, Jaime, Pizarro, Ricardo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2022; Wiley; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Adult; Adults; Advocacy; Chile; empowerment; Feasibility Studies; Foreign Countries; Humans; Intellectual disabilities; Intellectual Disability; Multidisciplinary teams; Participation; Personal Autonomy; Program Effectiveness; rights; Self Advocacy; Social interaction; Social Participation; South America; Stakeholders; Chile; South America; empowerment; intellectual disability; self-advocacy; advocacy; rights
• ISSN: 1360-2322; 1468-3148
• DOI: 10.1111/jar.12951

Background People with intellectual disability in Chile face individual and collective barriers to social participation. Lack of knowledge about their rights and tools for effective self‐advocacy seem to be key elements that need to be improved to facilitate participation. Method We present PaísDI, a 16 h long manualised program created by self‐advocates in collaboration with an interdisciplinary team, with four modules: rights and intellectual disability, leadership in intellectual disability, effective communication and financial considerations of social projects. This quasi‐experimental study had 349 participants, divided in three groups: people with intellectual disability, relatives and professionals. Feasibility and effectiveness where measured. Results The program is shown to be viable and effective, especially in its impact on self‐perception for self‐advocacy activities. Conclusion The discussion highlights Chile's historic debt in creating policies that promote self‐determination, knowledge and the empowerment of people with intellectual disability, to bolster their participation as citizens.