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-By Favour Egwumba-

Every step made is a step towards Heaven

For us at The Straight Child Foundation, one thing propels our vision and mission, and that is creating a life where children with disabilities would live beyond the limitation of their conditions. This is the vision that has birthed this project and as part of our mission to see it come to life, this program has been created to accelerate the in-process of providing intensive training and achieve this goal through a combined effort of professionals who share the same passion with us.

Since our conception, we have undertaken the responsibility of advocacy and improved care solution for children living with Cerebral Palsy, including engaging in major partnerships with stakeholders in the field, as well as with other non-governmental organizations in the international settings. Just because we believe sorely in putting our every desire into practical steps, some of our major achievements also includes providing rehabilitative tools for children whose function depends on it, and the testimonies have not only proven that it only takes each one of us to make a decision at changing the status quo as well as putting our full weight behind it, but also given a meaning to the “anecdote… a ray of sunshine in a dark and stormy weather”.

Putting on new shoes

Yesterday takes with it the glory it has achieved for itself, which is why we take pride in embracing the novelty of the new day always.

We have achieved a few great strides with raising awareness on the condition called Cerebral palsy but there is more work to be done and this booth camp is our today’s more.

Our devotion to the business of partnering with stakeholders who have proven to be astute in their various fields of profession without sacrificing the need for compassion still holds weight. And so, with our select team of health professionals, we have created an intensive, hands-on, and holistic training session that will hold for the major parts of the day, to provide orientation for new and existing parents who have otherwise been struggling with the disoriented feeling that comes with trying to understand what is going on. Alongside the orientation, a participatory and actively engaging session that fully incorporates the children, whose needs are at the forefront of our creation, with a renewed avenue at helping them attain the agency they need, for a better sense of self regardless of their disability.

These professionals have existing background in the knowledge of Cerebral palsy, which is fully backed with skills in rapid iteration training as well as interpersonal skills with a proven track in creating participation as well as establishing concrete leaning behavior.

As the program will span long hours of the day, these professionals are also equipped with the creative knowledge of for an enduring focused attention, ensuring active engagement through fun, energetic and dynamic sessions that do not take in the exertion of the time span.

Everybody is Welcome

These training sessions are available to children with Cerebral Palsy in their different stages of development and appearance. Although, they will require different levels of training, the session will streamline its focus on these aspects:

• Providing orientation exercise to caregivers on the Cerebral Palsy condition and the way to navigate the stigma around it. These caregivers are properly drilled on what the condition really is about and how they can through their children raise better awareness on the condition to help deal with the stigma associated with Cerebral palsy in their area. This session comes with an introduction particularly the otherwise viewed as uncoordinated but unique from the regular child’s developmental growth. Whit this perspective and the knowledge provided, it is assured that parents are more aware and can determine the stage of development at which their child is growing and providing them with a short-term goal planner to help them monitor and keep track of the different stages in their growth for ease of assessment.
• Engaging the children using the play and communication method, as well as helping to develop their agency by working on their preferred pattern of communication. This strategy takes into cognizance the position if the children as beneficiaries and focused mostly on their activities with prompts a nd guides for the caregivers to give feedback on the monitoring and evaluation of their ability and improvements in speech, motor and cognitive factors.
• Provide care plans aimed at rehabilitation with an aim at improving the following:

1. Optimization of mobility to ensure that the children can effectively carry out simple motor functions involving the hands and feet.
2. Improving the nutritional status with expert advice for caregivers on the required balanced diet and the available substitutions in the absence of recommended requirement, to aid in sufficient growth and development.
3. Strengthen family support through engagement and active participation in awareness of the condition and the management methods.
4. Foster self-care practices for the caregivers whose mental and physical fitness is pivotal for a more intentional positive response status in the development stage of the children.
5. Create effective techniques for enhanced communication methods in the children for ease of interaction, especially when in need. This technique would take into cognizance the different levels of communicative abilities of each child with strategies in place to help them achieve their individual and unique milestone.

While this is not an entirely exhaustive outline on the courses to be undertaken during the program, the training will take on a different approach with each professional engaging closely with the children and their caregivers in a more individualized setting while also encouraging and facilitating group participation among parents. It is our earnest wish and desire that each participant, caregiver and child, can leave the program with a renewed satisfaction and hope to encourage them on this difficult but necessary journey towards creating a better life for their future.