Things have gotten busier at work in the last little while...and as most you know, this makes me very happy. Last week I started doing focus groups with the staff at a few orphanages to learn about their day to day challenges and how we can help. So far I see a high need for training on proper positioning and feeding techniques, and of course equipment to allow these strategies to actually be put into place.
Along the same lines I've been working to get Handicap International (HI) to accept to order pediatric wheelchairs. This is a complicated issue as while the need for proper positioning is clear, there are questions about the maintenance of the wheelchairs once HI is no longer as present in Haiti, as well as the true feasibility of mobility in the chairs given the physical environment. There has been a healthy debate over whether it is better to use local resources and make basic positioning for within the home, or whether to go ahead with the wheelchairs regardless of the limitations because of the importance of social participation. In the end, I suspect that we will have a combination of the two which hopefully will meet the needs of most of our clients.
Here is an example of a little girl who is in desperate need of a proper wheelchair. When we arrived at her house she was sitting outside in this chair, with her arm draped over the back for stability as there was no seat belt, trunk support, vest, etc...She has athetoid CP, is non-verbal, and is clearly very intelligent. As you can imagine I wanted to take her home and hook her up with a powered wheelchair and a communication device ASAP, but clearly that isn't possible. Luckily she is participating in the CP program that started just recently at our rehab centre here.
The last few days of my week were spent in Petit Goave...a smaller town a few hours from port-au-prince where we have another Antenne. The security rules are more relaxed there and we were allowed to walk to work and peruse the local market...a welcomed change! I did a training on functional evaluation, goal setting, and using contracts with the beneficiaries as a way to monitor the change in their rehab process and determine when they are ready to be discharged. I've seen a serious need for this as I read through charts and realize that certain beneficiaries have been seen 1 x a week since the earthquake, and might continue to be seen 1 x week for the rest of their lives...even if they aren't making progress. I'll admit that my audience looks a little bored in the picture, but I've been telling myself that they were just trying to take it all in.
Along the same lines I've been working to get Handicap International (HI) to accept to order pediatric wheelchairs. This is a complicated issue as while the need for proper positioning is clear, there are questions about the maintenance of the wheelchairs once HI is no longer as present in Haiti, as well as the true feasibility of mobility in the chairs given the physical environment. There has been a healthy debate over whether it is better to use local resources and make basic positioning for within the home, or whether to go ahead with the wheelchairs regardless of the limitations because of the importance of social participation. In the end, I suspect that we will have a combination of the two which hopefully will meet the needs of most of our clients.
Here is an example of a little girl who is in desperate need of a proper wheelchair. When we arrived at her house she was sitting outside in this chair, with her arm draped over the back for stability as there was no seat belt, trunk support, vest, etc...She has athetoid CP, is non-verbal, and is clearly very intelligent. As you can imagine I wanted to take her home and hook her up with a powered wheelchair and a communication device ASAP, but clearly that isn't possible. Luckily she is participating in the CP program that started just recently at our rehab centre here.
The last few days of my week were spent in Petit Goave...a smaller town a few hours from port-au-prince where we have another Antenne. The security rules are more relaxed there and we were allowed to walk to work and peruse the local market...a welcomed change! I did a training on functional evaluation, goal setting, and using contracts with the beneficiaries as a way to monitor the change in their rehab process and determine when they are ready to be discharged. I've seen a serious need for this as I read through charts and realize that certain beneficiaries have been seen 1 x a week since the earthquake, and might continue to be seen 1 x week for the rest of their lives...even if they aren't making progress. I'll admit that my audience looks a little bored in the picture, but I've been telling myself that they were just trying to take it all in.
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