Petra and Ben – Unlocking Abilities: Early

What happens in the first three years of life – both positive and negative – impacts the way we develop, learn and interact for the rest of our lives. This is true of both healthy infants and those that have experienced physical or emotional trauma.

Life in the Silk Road Area with a disability is very difficult. People with disabilities and their families are shunned from their community socially; they cannot access many public spaces including shops, schools or workplaces; and the healthcare system struggles to support them effectively.

They suffer from pain, isolation, exclusion and a general lack of rights. The more significant the disability, the greater the suffering. However, if a person is able to receive effective therapy from an early age their abilities and long-term outcomes are substantially improved.

Specialists within this country have recently gained the expertise needed to identify children who are at risk of Cerebral Palsy at a very early age. Early identification of developmental delays opens the potential for early therapy.

But the healthcare system there cannot currently support this and so they lose the potential for improved outcomes.

Members from the head of healthcare, neonatal, paediatric and neurology specialists, occupational therapists, rehabilitation clinics and healthcare professionals are crying out for help. They want to serve their community but do not know how.

This project will partner with health services to provide holistic care to identified families with the aim to:

Connect with and equip specialists who are identifying and referring infants that have or are at risk of development delay.

Work alongside local therapists, increasing their capacity to accurately assess and provide therapy to infants.

Provide an effective therapy and support system to the families themselves.

The budget covers initial capital and resources to establish an early intervention clinic as well as training, therapy resources, registration expenses and enrichment packs to ensure families are not only supported at the clinic but also as a family at home.