On 15.07.2020 in the big hall of the District Administration of Burgas in compliance with all anti-epidemiological measures was held the twentieth meeting of the District DI Coordination Mechanism (DDICM).
The meeting was opened and chaired by Mrs. Antonia Meserdzhieva, local coordinator of DDICM for Burgas district. The meeting was attended by 28 participants, members of DDICM – managers and specialists from Regional directorate for social assistance, Directorates for social assistance, CPDs and Community support centers from the district, Municipality of Burgas, Regional education structure, non-profit organizations and coordinators of Hope and homes for children – Bulgaria. Mrs. Kremena Stoyanova – National consultant for children’s policies at HHC – Bulgaria also took part in the meeting.
Mrs. Meserdzhieva introduced the new chairman of DDICM – Mr. Vladimir Krumov, deputy regional Governor of Burgas and announced the agenda of the meeting. Mr. Krumov welcomed the participants and expressed his readiness to continue the active work of the DDICM in terms of prevention of child abandonment and case work. All members of the DDICM presented themselves and shared successes and challenges in the conditions of the pandemic and presented the work of the institutions on deinstitutionalization.
Under the second item of the agenda, the participants discussed 2 cases on prevention of child abandonment. The first was presented by the director of Community support center – Burgas – Mrs. Maria Atanasova for a two-year-old girl and the second at the suggestion of Mrs. Vyania Gluhcheva – Head of Sozopol CPD for a 10-month-old boy. In both cases, the specialists proposed concrete solutions and support for the families in order to provide the children with better conditions and to keep them in the family environment. Hope and homes for children – Bulgaria will support parents by providing the most necessary for children and families food and other products, will seek the help of the Bulgarian Red Cross, the Center for maternal and child health, which supports uninsured and unemployed mothers. As of April 1, Home for medical and social care for children has a Center for Comprehensive services for children with disabilities and chronic diseases, which provides medical services to children together with their mothers.
The participants in the meeting received the Handbook of good practices of HHC – Bulgaria, which contains true stories of families and children at risk, brought to a successful conclusion as a result of inter-institutional work of experts and institutions.
At the end of the meeting, Mr. Krumov thanked to all participants and wished success in the work of experts and institutions in the process of deinstitutionalization.
