What thoughts come to your mind when you consider making a genuine difference in society? Well, Taawon solidly puts stock in having a commonsense effect on the ground to help individuals in need. Based on that and thanks to the support of the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Taawon opened the "Mousawat Association Center" at Mar Elias refugee camp, in Beirut, in the wake of revamping and equipping it. Mousawat center offers a wide assortment of physical therapy and rehabilitation services. It actually serves patients and individuals with disabilities, from both the Palestinian and Lebanese nationalities, in Beirut and its suburbs.

The restoration and equipping of the center have begun over a year ago. During this timeframe, the building was almost completely upgraded and transformed from the inside, especially since it previously suffered from extremely harsh conditions that didn’t fulfill the most reduced guidelines of a therapy center. It had a harmful impact on the health of the staff and the patients, as well as on the operational side of the business. Such conditions are humidity, water leakage, lack of ventilation, and inadequate lighting. Imagine the quality of life and services provided in such circumstances! They are all fixed now! Moreover; the entrances were also reformed to facilitate the mobility of people with disabilities into and outside of the building.

Thankfully, this initiative has increased the potential of the center to welcome and treat a larger number of patients, offering both free treatment services and insignificantly priced services to aid the less fortunate in society. This upgrade to the center’s capacity and capability now treats over 60 patients daily from numerous age groups. In addition, it welcomes children with disabilities and treats them through specialized physical, operational, and speech therapy sessions. If you’re thinking that this work is directly affecting patients, you must be right. Yet, it is indirectly impacting the whole community. For instance, the center currently employs a team of 12 specialists and is giving the opportunity to 18 interns from different universities to gain hands-on knowledge and experience, which empowers the young generation. 

Mr. Fouad Bawarshi, Head of the Executive Board of Taawon, emphasized the importance of the achieved work. This accomplishment greatly reflects on the quality of the offered services and on the aided patients, as it enhances the center’s ability to welcome more patients in need while adhering to the international standards adopted in centers dealing with the provision of rehabilitation and treatment services. He said, “A large segment of people with disabilities residing in Beirut depend on the services of this center, who are of different nationalities and of different ages, and the treatment for this segment of people is vital and necessary, especially under the difficult economic circumstances and the inability of most people to cover the high costs of treatment.”

Bawarshi continued “The restoration of Mousawat is part of recent restorations and equipping carried out by Taawon. We have renovated and rehabilitated two similar centers, one in Al Buss camp and the other in Sidon.”

Proudly, a difference has been made! Taawon will continue to work in coordination with a number of funded entities and institutions to implement projects that serve Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and Lebanese people in general. These efforts are a part of a specialized program launched to support and rehabilitate individuals and children with disabilities, as well as the therapy centers that provide services to them.