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Cerebral Palsy

Pacific Medical Law Donates $10,000 to Cerebral Palsy Association

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Pictured: Paul McGivern , Partner, Pacific Medical Law & Feri Dehdar, Executive Director, Cerebral Palsy Association of British Columbia

Pacific Medical Law donated $10,000 to support the Cerebral Palsy Association of British Columbia. These funds will go toward a variety of valuable services including providing bursaries for post-secondary school and summer camp, and supporting two new exciting programs being launched this year: dance and yoga for children with cerebral palsy.

At Pacific Medical Law, we have worked with numerous children living with cerebral palsy and their families. We have seen first-hand the challenges these families face on a daily basis, and understand their needs. We have also witnessed the remarkable resilience and strength these families demonstrate in the face of their struggles.

Families tell us about the tremendous benefit that legal settlements provide in terms of giving their child the best chance to achieve their full potential as well as easing the caregiving burden on the family as a whole. Unfortunately, many families will never receive a legal settlement. These families deserve our support. We are committed to helping these families by supporting the Cerebral Palsy Association of BC.

Cerebral Palsy is all about Incredible Adaptability

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Stephanie Hammerman is a case in point. She became the first certified CrossFit coach with cerebral palsy. In her interview with CNN, she said, “If you would have told me that in a year I would be lifting weights over my head, flipping tires and coaching this sport, I wouldn’t have believed you, but this is my reality. As an adaptive athlete and coach, I see and do things differently than most, but that doesn’t make my desire to be great any weaker. In CrossFit when the term “RX’d” is used it means an athlete has done something as prescribed. My weights and rep scheme may never be RX, but my effort always will be. If this last year has taught me anything, it’s to embrace every challenge that comes your way because you never know when that challenge is going to turn into great opportunity”.

Her story proves that anything is possible when people have the support, motivation and the resources to reach their goals. As a CrossFit athlete who had to leave this sport to recover from injuries, I am inspired by Stephanie’s story and encourage you to watch her video here.

*image via http://www.fitnesshq.com

Children with Cerebral Palsy Struggle to Access Medical Care in Northern Communities

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Children with cerebral palsy and their families continue to face challenges accessing medical care and services in rural locations. Two families told their story to the Vancouver Sun. Both are in receipt of legal settlements as a result of the medical errors made around the time of their birth. Both families describe their frustration and struggles in accessing the medical care their children need in the northern hometowns.

Krystal McKinnon, mother of 12 year old Brendan, describes an incident when Brendan’s feeding tube was broken and the emergency room department at Prince George Regional Hospital did not have a replacement part. When Krystal was finally able to locate a replacement part on her own, she explains that, “the doctors just sat around watching” as she put the feeding tube in. She says they often feel like guinea pigs when dealing with medical professionals who are uneducated in cerebral palsy.

Paul and Jean Gotro, parents of nine year old Kai, were forced to leave Quesnel, their home of 20 years, and move to Kamloops in order to be closer to BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. They describe the hassle and financial burden of having to make numerous trips to travel to Vancouver in order to obtain high quality medical care. Michael McMillan, chief operating officer of the Northern Interior Health Service Delivery Area explains that due to the small population in the north relative to the rest of the province, a number of specialized services are simply not offered. However, this explanation is of little comfort to those families who are already struggling with the significant emotional, physical and financial impact of raising a child with cerebral palsy. In order to protect these children from further medical complications, and to allow them to reach their full potential, it is imperative that they have the necessary resources to access adequate medical care.

Read full story here

*image via www.cerebralpalsyguide.com

Growing up with Cerebral Palsy: Planning Transition into Adulthood

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For individuals living with cerebral palsy and their families, the transition from the pediatric care setting to adult care providers can be a stressful and challenging one. Dr. Oskoui, pediatric neurologist at Montreal Children’s Hospital, provides some practical advice to assist with this transition, focusing on preparing individuals for “living well” with chronic disability and optimizing their full potential, while also minimizing the emotional toll on parents during this difficult time of transition.

Traditionally, most physicians simply transfer their patients to adult care providers when the child reaches 18 years of age. This can result in children with cerebral palsy and their parents experiencing a tremendous sense of abandonment from their health care team, as well as a sense of loss, fear and uncertainty. The idea of transition is the purposeful, planned preparation of patients, families and caregivers to facilitate a transition which takes into account the need for continued monitoring of persisting needs that were present in childhood, such as feeding difficulties, gastroesophageal reflux, constipation, seizures, progressive scoliosis, contractures and dislocations secondary to spasticity, as well as to address the many new health issues that may emerge in adulthood, such as overuse syndromes, chronic pain and fatigue, and/or osteoarthritis.

Dr. Oskoui recommends starting the process as early as age 12, maintaining an up-to-date health record of the child’s medical history and providing for some overlap in care by adult care providers and your child’s pediatric care providers, in order to maximize continuity of care and optimize the child’s health and wellbeing.

For full text of the article click here.

Stepping Up to Support Individuals Living with Cerebral Palsy

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Cerebral Palsy is the most common physical disability for children. These children and their families bravely face many challenges on a daily basis and deserve our support!

Pacific Medical Law is committed to helping individuals living with cerebral palsy. This coming September, we are participating in September, a global fundraising and public awareness initiative for individuals living with Cerebral Palsy. September challenges participants to track their daily step count (by wearing a pedometer) or other fitness activity with a goal of taking 10,000 steps a day during the month of September.

We encourage you to join in… please visit www.September.ca to register.

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