Elias used to work as a painter, but a terrible accident changed everything.

‘After falling from a window I had serious injuries to my pelvis and right arm and wrist. I also had a brain haemorrhage and my eye socket was broken… I feared that I would no longer be able to walk.’

It would be easy to think that work would be a low priority for Elias. Indeed, returning to work after long-term unemployment, especially when it is related to illness or disability, can require specialist support. Luckily for Elias, a European Social Fund (ESF) supported project gave him hope.

“We Go to Work” offers employment guidance as part of the rehabilitation process, while people are still in hospital. The project reaches out to people with disabilities or injuries and assists them in starting work through a sustainable and tailor-made solution for each individual.

The specialist project was conceived by the Specialised Mediation Team (Gespecialiseerd Team Bemiddeling, GTB), who partnered with Ghent University Hospital (UZ Gent) to offer the service in East Flanders.

Because “We Go to Work” is tailored to the individual, the benefits are different for everyone. For some, it is a long process, while others find that they are ready sooner. When the team met Elias, he was already keen to return to work, so they spent time learning about his experience and expectations in order to provide him with tailored therapy sessions. For example, an internship with UZ Gent’s technical team allowed him to experience painting again.

Thanks to “We Go to Work”, Elias is now working part-time as a painter at KASK, Ghent’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts. He says:

‘I got through it with rehabilitation, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and swimming. Relatively quickly during my rehabilitation I got to know Katrien and Sofie. They guided me well, both during job interviews and on my CV.’

The ESF funded project has lowered the barrier for Elias, and some 650 other recovering patients at the University Hospital of Ghent, to rejoin the world of work, while increasing in self-confidence, post injury.

His enthusiasm showed when he said, ‘There was a vacancy at KASK and I jumped on it. I want to move forward. The team pushed me through to believe that I could work again. I am really very pleased with it.’

Ultimately, the project helps patients rediscover their passions through support, encouraging them to start working again without pressure while they recover, physically and emotionally. The project’s therapy sessions involved Elias completing a painting internship, free from the pressure of having to perform in a job, so that when he recovered, he felt enthusiastic and ready to work as a painter again.