Farzana Akhtar is one of our senior physiotherapists in Kargil. She has a bachelor's degree in physiotherapy and has been working for Rewa na Kasco in Kargil since March 2022. 
She is very committed, works very efficiently, is goal-oriented and has a great interest in expanding her knowledge, further training and networking.

 
In 2025, the International Congress of the International Alliance of Childhood Disabilities (IAACD) and the European Academy of Childhood Disabilities (EACD) took place in Heidelberg. It offered professionals as well as those affected and their families the opportunity to learn about the current state of research and expertise in the field of congenital and early childhood developmental disorders. International experts presented various developmental disorders ranging from cerebral palsy and autism spectrum disorders to congenital neurological disorders and explain current therapeutic approaches and measures. The congress was an ideal platform for gaining a sound insight into the current state of the art in the various fields by participating in lectures and seminars. The congress language was English.

Thanks to generous support from Barbara Forst's friends and acquaintances, as well as numerous donors, we were able to raise the funds needed for the project. Thank you very much to everyone!

With the help of Heike Holz and Rosemarie Geenen, our volunteer physiotherapists from Germany, who always support our team in Kargil with advice and assistance, a suitable program was put together for Farzana Akhtar from the wide range of options offered by the congress. The registration was completed and travel and accommodation were also organized. 
Barbara Forst explored and organized internship opportunities in Hamburg, and an internship at Heike Holz's practice in Erlangen was also arranged. In short, a wonderful program was put together.

Unfortunately, however, we were unable to implement our ambitious project plans. Shortly before the planned trip, we learned that the visa had been denied. This was already the second rejection in the application process. After the first rejection, we had tried again to prove the significance and purpose of the trip with additional documents and letters of recommendation. Especially considering that in the past it had always worked out well to bring our staff from Ladakh to Germany, we remained optimistic until the very end. But times have changed, and this does not make international cooperation any easier.

We are happy that we were able to secure Farzana's participation in the congress by converting the booked courses and seminars into online versions. Heike Holz also participated in the same courses online, so that she could prepare and follow up on the topics together with Farzana. This enabled us to implement an important part of our project, participation in the world congress, and thus give Farzana the opportunity to learn about and experience the latest developments in the specialist areas.

Looking back, the project was a success despite the necessary adjustments to the circumstances and the cancellation of the trip to Germany. Both Farzana Akhtar and Heike Holz participated in the online conference with great enthusiasm and commitment, reviewed the content again with Rosemarie Geenen, and thus were able to gain a great deal from the project.

Please read the report for more information.

Report on the participation in the: International Alliance of Academies of Childhood Disability (IAACD)/European Academy of Childhood- onset Disability (EACD) from 24.06.25 - 28.06.2025

It was a hugh congress in which research teams from 83 nations, consisting of doctors*, therapists*, affected people “people with lived experience” and their families from all over the world, participated and contributed. The participants were present on site or online.

Farzana Akhtar, Rosemarie Geenen and Heike Holz thought together in advance about which content from the very extensive program could be interesting and help us in our work and put together a program from the many offers accordingly.

Personal note from Farzana Akhtar:

I am a physiotherapist at the Rewa Society Kargil and recently took part in the IAACD\EACD online. This international congress offered a lot of presentations dealing with different topics for children with disabilities. I participated online.

First of all, I would like to thank you all for supporting me and helping me to attend this important congress. It was a dream come true to hear a wide variety of topics presented by such experienced and knowledgeable speakers from all over the world. I am very happy to have been part of such a congress.

 Every single session was informative and educational.

Conclusion:

Overall, the online program provided valuable insights and practical implementation opportunities to promote disability awareness, early identification and treatment. By applying these insights and interventions, we therapists can help to personalize therapy and create a more inclusive, supportive environment for people with disabilities. The connection to daily life has played a major role in many contributions. At Rewa Society Kargil, we can draw on our experience and build on it with the new input.

I have already started to share the topics with my colleagues in team training sessions.

Personal note from Heike Holz and Rosemarie Geenen:

Our selected congress program allowed us to enter into an intensive work process over the course of the week. Farzana and Heike took part in the respective lectures. We met with Rosemarie once or twice a day for a Zoom meeting. We reflected on the content, discussed the benefits for our work and noted areas that were important to pass on to the team. There were many research findings on a wide variety of topics relating to the subject of “children with disabilities”.

Topics that came up again and again and were discussed by us were ethical questions of feasibility, the goal orientation of the people concerned, the family connection and the individual approach in daily life. The different cultural aspects also came into play.

Conclusion:

We can look back on a very interesting congress that provided us with plenty of impetus to engage in a very interesting exchange. This process will continue in our monthly Zoom sessions with the therapy team in Ladakh. The congress contributions will be available online throughout the year so that we can use them for our Zoom meetings and thus share them with the entire team.

Thank you!

We would like to express our sincere gratitude for your support in making this project possible.