Mtwapa - Community Initiatives

The Coastal Community Development Initiative for People with Special Needs

This organization was started after discovering that there are many children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities in the Twapa community (12 villages). There are 8 active members including 2 therapists and 2 teachers who do field work. They go to the houses where the Community Workers have identified children with disabilities. Some of the children are referred on to the Hospital (with a letter of referral). They are followed up after surgery. A Home programme is designed with the parents for those who do not need surgery.

Now all this work is done on a voluntary basis, in fact the active members contribute 200 shillings a month towards transport and other costs.

Elizabeth Okella outside the building they use. She coordinates the filedwork team.

They all do other work to keep going. Elizabeth works part time at the Cerebral Palsy Foundation. an has masterminded the preparations and organization of the Conference and the 2 courses being run with CPA trainers.

CONGRATULATONS to the Volunteers making a difference in Kenya.

Marian and Jean went with Mr Muzungu to visit one of the mothers who had been identified by the Community Workers. She has 6 children - the last 2 have cerebral palsy. When Elizabeth and team were visiting a lot of families with the Community workers they missed here house and she rang them saying she was the only one who was missed. So now she was the only one who was visited by the Muzungus

Marian showing the family photos of APT equipment.

We were choosing children with a need for a simple standing frame or chair as examples for teh students coming on the APT course. They will start with learning the techniques and in the 2nd week will make a special chair or standing frame according to the measurements they take from a child. We heard that P was not attending school due to distance and the fact that the local school that does have children with special needs only has boarding facilities for boys. It sounded as if she needed some equipment so her brother will come and help make a standing frame for her (she is in the green dress)

P and her mother

Mum and her baby who also has cerebral palsy

We were given a wonderful treat by P's father and family - coconut milk cut freshly and straight from the nut!

Coconut cheers! Mr Muzungu and Marian

MWTAPE SAHAJANAND SCHOOL

This school was built by a private benefactor and given to the government. It has wonderful classrooms and a dormitory for the children with disabilities and other children who cannot get home easily during the week. There are also some street children - now ex-street children receiving an education. They have a section for special need children. The APT course will be held in one of their classrooms.

Mr Muzungu is the Head of the Special Unit - he is with one of the children who will have something made for him during the APT training.

Conference at Cerebral Palsy Foundation

The Cerebral Palsy Foundation in Mombasa has been helping children with schooling since 1995. They have 33 children and 5 teachers, 3 therapists, care-givers and other staff. They are making a huge difference to the young people and children who attend. Many people are involved in fundraising to make the continuation of this facility possible.

A 2-day Conference is being held at The Cerebral Palsy Foundation Centre on 30th and 31st July 2009. Belinda, a Physiotherapist could only come later and arrived straight from the Airport yesterday. The sessions have included; What is cerebral palsy, the causes, what cerebral palsy looks like (signs) and different types, tips for helping the child uses the hands, stretches and handling, Positioning and using equipment (showing the APT items) and more, with lots of questions and contributions from the participants.

Belinda and Suzy demonstrating good sleeping positions for a child with cerebral palsy

Some participants were very interested in learning more about autism, so here they are with Suzy, who works in a school for children on the autistic spectrum.

Getting started in Kenya

Suzy Occupational Therapist looking forward to getting to Mombasa to start the training.

Jean barely makes the additional baggage allowance!!

Elizabeth Okella, Occupational Therapist has been masterminding the organization of both courses

CPA training in Kenya

After much preparation in UK and Kenya the training courses for therapists and people wanting to learn to make APT equipment for children is to start next week.

Friends helping to cover a standing frame and chair for teaching examples.

Suzy Laird and Belinda Kotzee will run the Elementary training for therapists.

Marian Velthuijs arrived last night from the Netherlands to help Jean run the Appropriate Paper-based technology course.

Kennett Launch of MYCEPA, Zambia

Kennett has moved from Ben Doree now but no photos are available until he gets back to a computer. On Saturday 25th July he got up at 0330 hours to get a taxi to Kitwe. There he joined the group going to the Launch of Mycepa. It is an organization set up with the long term aim of building an assessment and treatment centre for children with cerebral palsy in Zambia - a place for CP TRAIL BLAZERS! They now have the land fenced off and a container on the land. So many people came - more news will come from Ken and Esther Mundia in due course.

Next step Batch Production

Kennett is now in Zambia. He travelled from Lusaka to Kitwe by bus yesterday so he could take the new chair template/patterns and other necessary bits and pieces. The plan is to help the workshops get set up with shelves of piece parts e.g. sides, backs, seats and supports for a range of chair sizes. This will be ready and dry to help the Volunteers and CBR workers to make a chair to size far more quickly.

So today he started with the Volunteers from Wukwashi wa Nzambi and Ben Doree workshop.

Good news!

5 more standing frames have been made

and the APT bookcase that they started for the small office storeroom

is now finished.

Basic construction

Chrispine, Thompson and Patrick

carrying it to under the trees to dry out of the full sun

Next step- Chrispine fixing strengthening rods

(the bookcase is upsidedown)

PS. Not sure when Kennett will be able to get on line (it is quite a mission to get to the nearest town and find an internet shop) but hopefully a photo of the bookcase in situ and more news will be sent before too long!

The children being measured and testing equipment

Shadrick and his Mum
Shadrick trying out his standing frame and while the band is being checked

Measuring Hildah

Hildah concentrating on toy while in a spare chair

Now the for the big moment -

Hildah being prepared by physiotherapist Harrison to help her stand

Hurrah- she is standing in her Star Stander!

Hidah practising taking weight through her legs while the physiotherapist adjusts her feet

Joseph and Mum

Joseph in his chair looking at a toy horse

Measuring Raphael

Checking Raphael and his chair

and making adjustments to his chair

Bending the side flaps back

and designing a removable base to make the whole chair higher

with the advantage of more stability

Once the testing had been done it was time for adjustments to all equipment

- the great advantage of using cardboard is that adjustments can be made very easily if needed to change the position of the child using the equipment

and as the child grows