BlueAssist-approach and smartphone applications to support daily work of employees with cognitive disabilities
Name of institution: VZW BlueAssist
Type of the organization: Thematic scope of the project: - Access to employment and social inclusion
Problems to be solved (justification of the need of the transnational cooperation): Guiding programs often focus on the gap between the unemployed person and the labour market. This is not stimulating, neither for the guided person nor for the case worker.
Processes/responsibilities are not integrated and often spread over different persons, institutions. Some strengthen the competences of the individual. Other institutions focus on making the labour market more accessible.
Services often give too much care to people instead of empowering people. Clients have to adapt, to fit in the system and program of the service/the case worker instead of adapting the system/program each time to the client. Once the guiding stops, the target group is lost again. The intervention is not enough sustainable. Using the BlueAssist-approach combined with BlueCall Phone, and other smartphone applications, makes the coaching more sustainable and empower the confidence and possibilities of the employee with cognitive disabilities.
The problems are not only typical for Belgium. We experience at the moment a spontaneous stimulating exchange of ideas and good practices with the Pamijer Institution of Rotterdam and Vilans in labourcare, care-institutions and coaching of people with severe intellectual disabilities. We would like to make the transfer of the BlueAssist-vision supports the coaching of target groups on the labour market.
Objectives to be achieved: More longterm success experience of client and case worker. The client is responsible for his/her pathway and gets coaching which combines 3 perspectives in one coaching process customized to the client of the target group. This success is the result of a BlueAssist-approach (Bringing in a third perspective on top of a first perspective based on appreciate inquiry and focussing on the strengths, competences, the will of persons and a second perspectives which focuses on the accessibility of the labour market) combined with assistive technology which are based on existing technology but can be customized for instance BlueCall Phone and smartphone applications.
Main transnational activities (as provisionally planned, to be confirmed with partners): Joint development with the Netherlands: Integrating the 3 perspectives while guiding specific persons of the targeted group, intervision and sharing good practices.Evaluating the effects.If successful: Making a joint report that inspire others to work with the same approach.Steering group with partners from other European regions (Wallonia, Brussels, Nord pas de Calais, Greece, others?) to follow the development and to implement the BlueAssist-approach after validation.
Planned deliverables & outcomes of TNC: BlueAssist-approach is successfully implemented in customised programs.Exchange stimulates to find new ways and possibilities, vision based interventions.Models and good practices are inspiring for others: in the form of description of successful interventions in a written report, workshop, visual report, examples of successful use of BlueCall Phone and applications for smartphones.There is more empowerment of the persons who have got the guidance which combines the three perspectives.Target group and case workers are more motivated. Using BlueAssist-approach and BlueCall Phone has already been successfully implemented in the empowerment and daily support for people with severe intellectual disabilities. We think that this approach supported by smartphone-applications can be helpful to make customised programs for targeted groups to (re)enter the labourmarket, more motivating, sustainable, empowering and successful.
Target group: - Persons with mental or physical disabilities
Stage of the implementation: Project Idea (projects in preparation phase without grant awarded)
Budget of the project in EUR: 0
Budget of transnational activities in EUR: 0
Duration of the project from (dd/mm/yyyy) to (dd/mm/yyyy): 01/09/2012 - 31/08/2014
Duration of transnational activities within the project from (dd/mm/yyyy) to (dd/mm/yyyy): 01/09/2012 - 31/08/2014
Contact person: Ann Decorte
Phone: + 32 50 33 95 47 Mobile: +32 472 52 84 49
Fishing Pool 
fp_VZW Blue Assist_be.doc