Simple ideas that work: Celebrating development in persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities

Background: The purpose of this article is to share some lessons learnt by an interdisciplinary therapy team working with persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD), implemented in diverse, low-income contexts over a period of 8 years. Objectives: The objective of all the activities described here was to provide increased stimulation and development opportunities for persons with PIMD within different settings (day care centre, residential centre or family home). Method: We used an iterative action-learning approach where we applied existing evidence in the given context, reflected on and adapted strategies in collaboration with stakeholders on a cyclical basis. We focussed on achieving our objectives through ongoing hands-on training of the carers involved with the clients as we felt that by providing them with the knowledge and skills needed, plus ongoing support, these programmes would be more sustainable. Findings: It took some time to put systems in place in care settings, but once they became part of the daily routine, they provided increased opportunities for learning for clients with PIMD. In addition, there were often marked changes in individual clients’ communicative and physical functioning, which in turn encouraged carers to find new and different ways to interact with, and stimulate, the persons with PIMD in their care. Conclusion: Our hope is that parents and carers or professionals working in the field of PIMD in low-income contexts elsewhere may find one, some or all of these simple ideas useful in providing opportunities for learning, development and enjoyment for persons with PIMD

Using a Delphi process to determine optimal care for patients with pancreatic cancer

Aim Overall 5-year survival for pancreatic cancer is ~5%. Optimising the care that pancreatic cancer patients receive may be one way of improving outcomes. The objective of this study was to establish components of care which Australian health professionals believe important to optimally manage patients with pancreatic cancer. Methods Using a Delphi process, a multi-disciplinary panel of 250 health professionals were invited to provide a list of factors they considered important for optimal care of pancreatic cancer patients. They were then asked to score and then rescore (from one (no importance/disagree) to 10 (very important/agree) the factors. The mean and coefficient of variation scores were calculated and categorised into three levels of importance. Results Overall 63 (66% of those sent the final questionnaire; 25% of those initially invited) health professionals from 9 disciplines completed the final scoring of 55 statements/factors encompassing themes of presentation/staging, surgery and biliary obstruction, multi-disciplinary team details and oncology. Mean scores ranged from 3.7 to 9.7 with the highest related to communication and patient assessment. There was substantial intra- and inter- disciplinary variation in views about MDT membership and roles. Conclusion Overall the opinions of Australian health professionals reflect international guideline recommended care; however they identified a number of additional factors focusing on where patients should be treated, the importance of clear communication and the need for multi-disciplinary care which were not included in current clinical practice guidelines. Differences in priorities between specialty groups were also identified

Meningococcal disease - 2 NT cases in August 1997 - The view from CDC

On 1 August 1997, the Friday afternoon of the start of a three day weekend (NT Picnic Day Monday 4 August) a case of suspected meningococcal disease was notified to CDC Katherine by an experienced, long serving, local GP..

Simple ideas that work : Celebrating development in persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities

CITATION: Bullen, A. et al. 2018. Simple ideas that work : celebrating development in persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities. African Journal of Disability, 7(0):a273, doi:10.4102/ajod.v7i0.273.The original publication is available at https://ajod.org/index.php/ajodThe purpose of this article is to share some lessons learnt by an interdisciplinary therapy team working with persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD), implemented in diverse, low-income contexts over a period of 8 years. Objectives: The objective of all the activities described here was to provide increased stimulation and development opportunities for persons with PIMD within different settings (day care centre, residential centre or family home). Method: We used an iterative action-learning approach where we applied existing evidence in the given context, reflected on and adapted strategies in collaboration with stakeholders on a cyclical basis. We focussed on achieving our objectives through ongoing hands-on training of the carers involved with the clients as we felt that by providing them with the knowledge and skills needed, plus ongoing support, these programmes would be more sustainable. Findings: It took some time to put systems in place in care settings, but once they became part of the daily routine, they provided increased opportunities for learning for clients with PIMD. In addition, there were often marked changes in individual clients’ communicative and physical functioning, which in turn encouraged carers to find new and different ways to interact with, and stimulate, the persons with PIMD in their care. Conclusion: Our hope is that parents and carers or professionals working in the field of PIMD in low-income contexts elsewhere may find one, some or all of these simple ideas useful in providing opportunities for learning, development and enjoyment for persons with PIMD.https://ajod.org/index.php/AJOD/article/view/273Publisher's versio

A journey towards inclusive education : a case study from a ‘township’ in South Africa

CITATION: Luger, R., et al. 2012. A journey towards inclusive education: A case study from a ‘township’ in South Africa. African Journal of Disability, 1(1): 1-5, doi: 10.4102/ajod.v1i1.15.The original publication is available at http://www.ajod.orgThe purpose of this case study was to relate part of the journey to appropriate education for two young children with physical disabilities in a low socio-economic peri-urban informal settlement – or ‘township’ – in South Africa. The part of the on-going journey described here spanned four-and-a-half years and included the two children, their families, their teachers, their community and a small team of rehabilitation professionals working for a non-profit organisation in the area. The rehabilitation professionals’ goals were to provide support for the children, their families, their current special care centre and the school(s) they would attend in the future. The steps from the special care centre, to a mainstream early childhood development (ECD) centre for both of them, and then on to (a) a school for learners with special educational needs (LSEN) for one child and (b) a mainstream primary school for the other, are described. Challenges encountered on the way included parental fears, community attitudes and physical accessibility. Practical outcomes included different placements for the two children with implications and recommendations for prioritised parent involvement, individual approaches, interdisciplinary and community-based collaborations. Recommendations are given for clinical contexts, curricula and policy matters; for research and for scaling up such a programme through community workershttp://www.ajod.org/index.php/ajod/article/view/15Publiser's versio