Doha: The British Medical Journal of Innovations (BMJ INNOVATIONS), a specialised online peer-reviewed journal, has highlighted the success of the Qatar Foundation’s Sport Ability Friendly Program.
The program, which is the first of its kind in the State of Qatar, focuses on physical activity for individuals with different abilities, through a variety of sports activities, including swimming classes, cricket, football specially designed for children with autism, which has also been adapted to cater to a wide range of individuals, including those with Down syndrome, hearing, visual and physical disabilities, as well as learning disabilities, along with their social development.
The Foundations World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) and the team responsible for the Ability Friendly Program co-authored the report entitled “The Road to Success: Lessons Learned from the Qatar Foundation for Ability Friendly Program”, which highlighted key challenges and strategies to facilitate the mission of those looking to develop similar programs that promote inclusion for all.
In the report, data was collected on the performance of the program since its launch in 2018 to determine the extent of its development, and the survey, conducted by “WISH”, included the opinions of parents and caregivers of the program participants, in order to study the impact of the program on society in Qatar.
The results showed that more than 96 percent of the respondents noticed a positive change in the behavior of their children, including increased self-confidence, and improved communication skills, as a result of their participation in the program, and more than 98 percent of the respondents said that they would recommend the program to other parents who have children with special needs. This confirms the quality of the program and the high demand for such services in Qatar.
In 2017, WISH cooperated with the official charity of Liverpool Football Club to host a football training course in Education City at Qatar Foundation, with the aim of identifying effective ways to deal with children with autism, or who suffer from sensory or physical disabilities, and this initiative has become a starting point for the Ability Friendly Program on a large-scale in the Qatari community.
