Good health is a compulsory first step towards social inclusion and for Handicap International, treatment is not limited to orthopaedic fitting and rehabilitation.

The prevention of disabling diseases, the creation of community health services, the provision of psychological support for victims, all these initiatives aim to fulfil the same objective: to ensure every man, woman and child receives the same level of health care.

HIV / AIDS, lymphatic filariasis, poliomyelitis, or leprosy...these diseases are a real scourge on numerous countries where they leave their sufferers severely disabled and often socially excluded.  Learning how to take health precautions, information, vaccination and screening campaigns, however, enable populations to protect themselves from these diseases and reduce or set back the onset of the most seriously disabling consequences thanks to an early diagnosis.  If these diseases are better understood, they are also better treated and better accepted by the patient's family and friends.

In Mozambique, Kenya and Burundi, Handicap International works in close collaboration with local organizations, institutions and health workers to carry out vaccination and awareness campaigns, set up information and screening centers and offer training for trainers. 

The health projects developed by Handicap International aim to establish or reinforce access to high-quality healthcare for the most vulnerable. This is done by setting up community health services and local pharmacies, improving patient reception, training health workers, providing technical, methodological and financial support, and so forth. 

Handicap International offers support to those suffering from psychological problems including the victims of conflicts or terrorism, refugees, child soldiers, autistic or mentally disabled children. Our teams work in close collaboration with local health care workers to ensure the best treatment for these traumas through: officially recognized training, financial support, therapeutic mediation through games, theater or drawing, and assistance in setting up networks of professionals.