Health-impaired children social integration: Russian and non-Russian historical experience

The article is devoted to an analysis of health-impaired children social integration. The author identifies six major stages in the development of a society's attitude towards disability as a problem and disables children as a distinct social group: from absolute rejection and even destruction of health-impaired persons to public recognition of equal rights irrespective of health conditions. In the article, the author compares Russian and European experience in health-impaired-people-targeted aid-provision and concludes that Russian experience is significantly different from that of Europe, where aid programmes were informed by the goals and aims of the state. By mid-20th century, European society had come to a realization of health-impaired people's social equality and begun to develop a social model of disability, the underlying premise of which was active social assistance provided for persons with special needs in the course of their socialization. The predominant attitude in Russia was characterized by plaintive compassion and pity, which shaped the support/aid model as initially grounded in private charity and, later, state provision. By the end of the 20th century, due to global socio-economic reforms, a social model of disability came to be created in Russia. However, legal deficiencies, fund and qualified personnel shortages, as well as the negative stereotypes have so far been challenging the development of the model. As a conclusion, the author insists that the adaptivity model currently in effect be replaced by a self-actualization model. The author provides practical recommendations concerning personnel training and re-training in the field of social follow-up of health- impaired people.