Funksjonsnedsettelse, oppvekst og habilitering

For most people the transition from childhood/youth to adulthood is a major upheaval – in physiological, cultural and social terms. For young people with a disease that is either congenital or acquired early in life, or with an injury that reduces functional capacity, the transition can involve further challenges – of a health-related nature. The theme of this report is the transition to adulthood within the framework of the habilitation service. Our aim is to shed light on challenges that youngsters needing a combination of coordinated services face in relation to the services established for them, and which are to assist them in childhood, upon transition to adulthood and later in life. Our point of departure is that if functionally impaired young people are to participate successfully in adult society, their need for health-related services must in each case be met in a manner commensurate with the challenges posed by the individual’s health situation. This report deals with young people who have entered employment or are completing their education. In addition, they live in their own dwelling away from the parental home. These can be said to be young people whose inclusion in important social arenas has a «success». Hence the report seeks to illuminate the role of habilitation in the process prior to the present situation. This is achieved by means of interviews with two groups of informants. The first group comprises young adults with functional impairments. The second group comprises staff of coordinating units in a selection of Norwegian municipalities or municipal wards. The first chapter is a general introduction to the issues addressed in the report, while the second chapter expounds the habilitation field, its organisation, aim and main tools. Chapter 3 reports on the main findings of an interview survey with heads of coordinating units in a selection of Norwegian municipalities. Our particular focus is on issues related to collaboration within the municipality, between the municipality and the specialist health service and the transition between childhood/youth and adult life. The decision to interview the head of the coordinating unit in the respective municipalities was taken upon the advice of the Norwegian Directorate of Health. Chapter 4 discusses functionally impaired youngsters' experiences with the habilitation service and seeks in particular to elicit experiences from the transition from child habilitation to adult habilitation. Chapte