Over the past 6 months I have been given the opportunity to volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House in Rochester, MN.This house and others like it are meant to serve as a comfortable place to stay that they can fee at home at while their child is undergoing treatment. The main thought behind this is that the families should be focused on their child instead of worrying about paying for a hotel, finding meals, or traveling miles upon miles to get to the hospital. Every house includes basics such as hot home cooked meals, private bedrooms for each family, and playrooms for children. Some houses have family support services, sibling support services, and recreational programs for everyone that is staying that the house. Families either stay at no cost or are asked to make a donation up to $25 per day, depending on the house, but no one is ever turned away due to inability to pay and the donation fee is waved.
While working at the house I got a chance to do a wide array of activities. The most common was the use of different video games including the Wii and Xbox Kinect, both of which allow the kids to move around and get physical activity while in a safe clean setting. We also made several group trips to the Rochester Athletic Club and the Rochester YMCA where me and several of the teen boys went and played everything from basketball to mini golf. Board games were also a favorite of some of the younger kids especially Uno and Candy Land. I also had the chance to help a certified music therapist and a pet therapist lead several programs.
The main goal of the RMH is to make the families feel as at home as possible during their stay. Another major goal is to help the child and his or her family cope with and understand all of the issues involved with their hospital experiences and aid in them making a full recovery.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Baseball for all
Started in Rockdale, GA in 1998, The Miracle League give all kids a chance to play baseball. The league started with a few simple rules:
¨ Every player bats once each inning
¨ All base runners are safe
¨ Every player scores a run before the inning is over (last one up gets a home run)
¨ Community children and volunteers serve as ‘buddies’ to assist the players
¨ Each team and each player wins every game
The main goals of the league are safety and most of all fun. Once a Miracle League is established the next step is to build a miracle field. Most fields include a custom-designed field with a cushioned rubberized turf to help prevent injuries, wheelchair accessible dugouts, and a completely flat surface to eliminate any barriers to wheelchair-bound or visually impaired players. The design also included three grass fields, which could be converted to the synthetic turf as leagues grew. In addition, accessible restrooms, a concession stand, and picnic pavilion were included in the design. Most leagues are sponsored by the local MLB team who helps with construction and fund raising.
These leagues are especially useful because it gives kids with ranges of physical and cognitive abilities to participate in a team sport. This improves physical functioning and helps teach social skills.
Wrestling not for the meek.....
This past year, for the first time since the NCAA Wrestling National Championship began in 1924, a wrestler with one leg won a division 1 national championship. Anthony Robles from Arizona state won the 125 pound weight class. This is not the first time that person with a physical disability has succeeded in wrestling. Zach Gowen was the first wrestler with on leg to win a high school wrestling state championship. Zach then continued on to become a professional wrestler in the WWE, the largest Professional wrestling company in the world.
Wrestling is a great sport for amputees to compete in because having to be on your feet is only a portion of competing. Having a low center of gravity is very important for the sport so being on your feet is not necessarily needed. The impact of being able to compete on the regular high school team can be a huge social and psychological boost for a teen.
They will surf again
Several weeks ago a movie called Soul Surfer was release into theaters. The movie follows the true story of Bethany Hamilton,a young surfer who loses her leg in a shark attack, on her journey to get back on her board. This got me interested in looking at adaptive surfing and some search and i found a program call They Will Surf Again funded as a part of the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. This no cost program travels to beaches around the nation and put on by area voulenteers. It is aimed at people with spinal cord injuries who may have surfed before their injuries or may have never surfed before. A community is allowed to request for the program to come to their town as long as you have a safe, approved beach area. The benefits of participants in this program are profound giving them increased self confidence, social skills, and overall quality of life.
Jungle Book
During the semester we talked about the usefulness of horse therapy but we did not talk about the effectiveness of animal assisted therapy with other animals including dogs, cats, snakes and birds. Animal assisted therapy (AAT) is useful for a wide range of populations and ages. The biggest benefits are the mental effects on the client.
For elderly adults who are a part of AAT the biggest benefit can be seen though a lowered sense of stress and anxiety. It can also be very useful in helping them deal with the loss of a significant other. AAT can be extremely useful for all children especially those dealing with autism or cognitive delays. Dealing with an animal can teach the individual social skills like gentleness and appropriate touching. It has shown that having an animal in a room for various types of counseling allows children to open up and feel more comfortable.
Wheelchair track and Field
This ruling gives a whole new group of kids a chance to be a part of high school track teams. Usually it would be very expensive for a family to take their child to specialized meets but now it allows children of all economic backgrounds to compete. This will be very helpful to help increase social skills of all participants as well as promote incision.
New MSHSL rule article
Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming
In the past few years pools have became much more important for exercising and rehabilitation. Each year there is some new kind of aqua therapy. Let's begin with aqua aerobics which is the most common aqua therapy. This is very useful for especially fragile populations because it takes weigh off of joints and a heated pool will loosen up muscles and joints even more. This allows a participant to maintain muscle tone with out putting unneeded stress on the rest of the body.
Another very new type of rehabilitation is called Watsu. This is a type of stretching and muscle relaxation as seen above. This can be very helpful for people with muscular dystrophy and other muscle disorders. The helps keeps joint flexibility that may not be able to be obtained outside of the water. Watsu has also been found to be helpful for pregnant women.
Another very new type of rehabilitation is called Watsu. This is a type of stretching and muscle relaxation as seen above. This can be very helpful for people with muscular dystrophy and other muscle disorders. The helps keeps joint flexibility that may not be able to be obtained outside of the water. Watsu has also been found to be helpful for pregnant women.
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