Nyamira County residents have been urged to support and show compassion for children and families raising children with cerebral palsy for them to grow normally and thrive in the community.
This appeal was made by Nyamira County Coordinator for the National Council for Persons with Disability (NCPWD), Fred Obuya, while presiding over the commemoration of World Cerebral Palsy Day in Nyamira regretting that children with Cerebral Palsy, their caregivers and families are still experiencing discrimination, exclusion and stigmatization exhibited at home and within communities.
“We have children with various special needs in our community but children with cerebral palsy have unique challenges because the nature of their disability is multifaceted and therefore, demands that they are attended to by compassionate and ever-present caregivers with selfless love.”
Mr. Obuya highlighted that parents or care givers must be on high alert and act swiftly in seeking for early medical intervention when they notice early signs of cerebral palsy like delayed development milestones like crawling and speech development, lack of coordination for muscle and body movement, drooling, always in a sleeping position due to their inability to sit upright.
The NCPWD county coordinator confirmed that the council has numerous interventions for people or children with cerebral palsy and are appealing to professionals and organizations of good will to partner with them and bring on board other inclusive ideas and strategies geared towards showing compassion and supporting children with cerebral palsy in our communities.
“The council in partnership with the County referral hospitals provides occupational therapy interventions which encourage day to day physical development milestones like sitting, walking and toileting. We also offer physical therapy where we focus on suitable physical activities to improve on muscle coordination, body’s strength, balance and mobility. The council provides speech therapy interventions to help children improve on their oral communication skills and saliva control, and offer dietary advice to enable caregivers to consistently feed their children with a balanced diet to maintain achieved development milestones. Children with Cerebral palsy also have access to educational intervention where they are admitted in special schools, assessment and educational programmes designed to align with their needs, mostly life skills which enable them undertake basic errands with ease.” Mr. Obuya enumerated.
He emphasized that the most critical intervention is the medical intervention where they collaborate with medical specialists who assess the level of cerebral palsy disability, prescribe appropriate medication for relieving muscle tension and reducing seizures, provide diapers for caregivers to maintain toilet hygiene, and wheel chairs to assist them be moved from one point to another.
He urged parents and caregivers of children with cerebral palsy to continue walking the journey with compassion, commitment, and courage knowing very well that their responsibility is God given and recognizing that every child is unique, with their own talents underscoring the need for support, inclusion and equal opportunities for them to thrive.
World Cerebral Palsy day is celebrated every 6th of October to create awareness and advocate for support and this year’s theme was ‘Unique and United’ which appeals to everyone to actively reach out and celebrate the unique strengths of persons with cerebral Palsy.
By Deborah Bochere
