Special needs children are among the groups most vulnerable during the Covid-19 pandemic, both in their health and education.
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Special needs children are among the groups most vulnerable during the Covid-19 pandemic, both in their health and education.
The multidimensional impacts of the pandemic have put children with special needs in a difficult situation. Even under normal circumstances, the special needs children have difficulty to obtain health services and education. The Covid-19 pandemic further worsens the situation, impacting them disproportionately, both directly and indirectly.
Their high dependence on others has hampered them in implementing health protocols. The difficulties in following basic hygiene measures and keeping a safe distance with others further increases the risk of contracting Covid-19, especially those with a comorbidity.
Even though they are very vulnerable to being exposed to the disease, their access to information related to Covid-19 according to various conditions is quite minimal. Blind people, for example, need information in Braille.
This should become a valuable lesson.
Health services are still limited if they are infected with the disease. Four students of the Dwituna Rawinala Special School (SLB), Jakarta, who tested positive for Covid-19, were unable to get treatment at a hospital some time ago, because of their condition. This should become a valuable lesson.
In the field of education, they also face difficulty in conducting distance learning. Surveys conducted by a number of institutions showed that more than 70 percent of special needs children have difficulty following online learning (Kompas, 9/8/2020). They have to stop their educational activities because of the absence of teachers. Stopping their educational activities and physiotherapy can cause a setback in their growth. For the special needs students, with certain disabilities, especially those with multiple handicaps, activities must be consistent and continuous to maintain their physical and psychological development.
Due to their special condition, special steps are needed to protect them from the impact of the pandemic. The special needs children should be placed at a response center which can accommodate their needs as part of the disaster mitigation programs.
All the measures imposed in coping with Covid-19 must also avoid all forms of discrimination against people with disabilities. This is important so that the incident experienced by the four students of the Dwituna Rawinala special school would not occur again. Whatever the reason, the rejection of the hospital to receive special needs children because the difficulty in treating them is a form of discrimination.
Parents of special needs children should also be given special knowledge so that they can provide special care during the pandemic.
With the high risk of being exposed to Covid-19, enabling health facilities to treat special needs children and people with disabilities is absolutely necessary as a form of protection for them. With the limitation of health workers, the involvement of the disability community is important. Parents of special needs children should also be given special knowledge so that they can provide special care during the pandemic. With the closure of schools in order to prevent Covid-19 transmission, parents have to play a major role in maintaining children\'s growth and development.