JCI Manila rolls out symposium on caring for kids with cerebral palsy
Premier leadership development organization JCI Manila rolled out for the second time a symposium on how parents can aid in the therapy of children with cerebral palsy.
The event was attended by more than a hundred children-patients, along with their parents and guardians, and doctors from some of the key hospitals in the country such as the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center.
The speakers were Dr. Alexis Reyes, associate professor of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of the Philippines’ College of Medicine; Pablo Beelen, an international consultant and lecturer in neurodevelopmental treatment; and Rizalio Sanchez of the National Council for Disability Affairs.
Reyes, who’s been working together with Beelen for a long time now in the treatment and care of kids with cerebral palsy, said, “A tag-team approach is always important. More than physical therapists, parents must take a proactive role in the therapy of their own kids with CP.”
Parents are advised to know the proper ways of handling their child at home, so they can be as mobile as possible and to prevent further complications such as the worsening of spasticity and rigidity of certain body parts.
Beelen emphasized the great potential and skills that kids with CP can offer to society.
“Their talents can be unearthed through proper attention, constant care and guidance,” he said.
He carried out an interactive workshop among parents and kids with CP, while Sanchez discussed the global and local rights of persons with disability.
The symposium is one of the four main activities under Golden Heart – JCI Manila’s banner initiative on the care of PWDs. This is under its community development program.
JCI Manila also hopes to create a specialized CP center at the Stepping Stone Clinic in Parañaque, totally renovate the assessment clinic for development pediatrics at the UP-PGH, and come up with a training module on CP.