The state has been paying €6.000 a month for four years for rent and other expenses for the Bridge Program to create a structure for people with autism, and to date the program has not worked, with people having to be hospitalized in the Psychiatric Hospital Athalassa, representatives of the Association for people with autism told the Health Committee of the Parliament, requesting the immediate authorization of the program.
For the start of operation of the structure, a relevant bill and regulations need to be passed, with the MPs of the Committee asking the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare and the Ministry of Health to proceed with the matter immediately.
In their letter to the Minister of Health in April 2024, which was shared on Thursday with the Health Committee, the Association notes that the need to run the program is huge, as many people on the autism spectrum are on medication, which needs to be regulated and up to to do this they need a specialized space with specialized staff for their needs.
They add that this is not feasible at the Athalassa Psychiatric Hospital, as the staff is not trained in autism and how to handle individuals on the spectrum. As stated in the letter, in 2024 two incidents within the spectrum were hospitalized at the Athalassa Psychiatric Hospital, since there was no other option.
"There is a program ready to start, the infrastructure is ready, and yet from 2021 we are waiting for a permit and a significant amount has already been wasted on renting, setting up, preparing the space, etc., but without the program offering any service," says the Association in his letter.
The President of the Health Committee, DISY Member of Parliament, Efthymios Diplaros, in his statements after the conclusion of the meeting, said that the bill and the regulations for the licensing of the program for the Association for People with Autism remain stuck in the drawers of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare.
"While the rent is paid on the said building in Limassol, part of the money is given to cover the manager's salary, yet nothing is done. As a result, 18-year-olds instead of being provided with therapeutic treatment are locked up at home or in psychiatric hospitals," he said.
"With a letter that we will officially send as a Committee, we will also ask the Under-Minister of Social Welfare and the Under-Minister and the Director General of the Ministry to quickly bring before us the legislative framework and the regulations for licensing the program," he noted.
He said that on December 5, the Committee will urgently request the presence of the two Ministers and officials to discuss the matter. "We are giving time until December 5 for the Deputy Ministry to finally tell us what has been going on all these years," he noted.
For his part, AKEL MP Nikos Kettiros said that because the "Bridge" Program has not been working for four years, some of the people with autism are forced to end up in psychiatric hospitals, which do not even have the infrastructure and cannot provide appropriate care.
"From 2021 these people are patient. They are asking the Ministry of Health and the Deputy Ministry of Welfare to implement a program that will help these people in a roof that has been rented for four years in Limassol Tower. It is empty, we pay rent, but the program is not being implemented and one Ministry is putting the blame on the other," he said.
He noted the Commission's decision to send a letter "in a strict style" to the two Ministries and to come to the Parliament on December 5, at the highest level, for the Deputy Minister of Welfare and the Minister of Health to answer what they are doing. “Every time they see this Link they make promises that the program will work. It's been four years," he said.
Source: KYPE