For Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Dimapur, February 29 (MExN): The Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Research (CIHSR) is inaugurating the Precious Gems’ School, For Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities at its campus on March 1 with L.K. Varte, Assistant Director, Rehabilitation Vocational Rehabilitation Centre for Handicapped Guwahati, Assam as the chief guest.
This school will be functioning as part of the Developmental Paediatrics Department of the above Hospital inside the premises. In addition to special education, children will have access for speech therapy, Physiotherapy, occupational therapy and medical facilities under the same roof. It is the first of its kind in Nagaland.
A complete medical, family, social, and educational history is compiled from existing medical and school records (if applicable) and from interviews with parents. Children are given intelligence tests to measure their learning abilities, and intellectual functioning. After assessing their abilities in adoptive behaviour skills, Special Education programme will be provided to children along with their parents.
Parents will be trained in handling their children to teach self-care activities, communication skills, social skills, functional academics, motor skills, and behaviour modification techniques for skill building as well as to control behaviour problems.
Thus facility of this kind which has been opened for the first time in Nagaland can be availed by the people to ensure proper care and management of children with Intellectual disability and developmental needs.
Scenario of Intellectual Disability in Nagaland
In Nagaland, there are lots of myths and misconceptions with regard to Intellectual Disability and other childhood developmental disorders. The cause for it is usually attributed to black magic, sins or curse of ancestors or parents, and even evil spirits.
Awareness creation programmes can thus go a long way in changing the attitudes and mind sets of the people. Awareness regarding the cause, types and the management options available for children with Intellectual Disability can help sensitize the parents and the society to the needs of children with Intellectual Disability.
Moreover, children with these kinds of challenges are usually taken to prayer centers and given traditional medicines from local traditional healers to chase away the “evil spirit” or “black magic” so that their children can be cured of it. Therefore creating awareness can help the in changing the attitudes and practices of the people with regard to Intellectual Disability and other developmental challenges.
Realizing the current situation in the state, Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Research took the initiative of starting the holistic approach for such children.
About intellectual and developmental disabilities
Intellectual disability (intellectual developmental disorder) is a disorder with onset during the developmental period that includes both intellectual and adaptive functioning deficits in conceptual, social, and practical domains.
In India, there is no reliable statistics available about the prevalence of intellectual and developmental disabilities. From the samples of few random sample surveys, in different cities, the population with intellectual disability could be somewhere around 2-3 percent. For a long time, the stigma of intellectual disability led families in India to conceal the existence of such children. Many misconceptions such as intellectual disability is a form of mental illness, and children with this disability is born because of the sin of their parents.
A diagnosis of Intellectual Disability is made if an individual has an intellectual functioning level well below average and significant limitations in two or more adaptive skill areas. Intellectual functioning level is defined by standardized tests that measure the ability to reason in terms of mental age (intelligence quotient or IQ). Intellectual Disability is defined as IQ score below 70. In general, children with intellectual disability reach developmental milestones such as walking and talking much later than the general population.
Symptoms may appear at birth or later in childhood. These children typically have difficulties with day to day life skills, communication and functional academics.
It is unidentified in many of these children at an early age and it becomes vivid only when they become school failures. The regular school teachers try their own ways of handling such children since they are unaware of different types of developmental disabilities.
Moreover, children who are identified by various sources also are not having adequate special education facilities and other forms of therapies in the state.
