Staff update - Te Whanau Kotahi

TE WHANAU KOTAHI
December 2010
Kia Ora Koutou Katoa from Barry Davies and the Te Whanau Kotahi Team
As 2010 draws to a close it is time to update
you on what has been happening at Te
Whanau Kotahi and provide you with
information which we hope will be valuable
through the holiday season and beyond.
Please keep a look out for our new website
which is currently being built. It will help us
keep in touch with you and the wider
community. We’ve been fortunate to secure a
grant from Bay Trust to help with this project.
We have been able to secure an increase in
MOH funding this year although not to the
level that would make our response to your
needs as swift as I would like. We are
currently working with 414 families, yet
another 95 children are on our waitlist.
During the year we have been able to have an
additional physiotherapist and occupational
therapist for short term contracts to reduce
wait times. I am currently asking for further
short term funding to help us reduce waitlist
for both clinical psychology and occupational
therapy.
In this edition there is an update on our staff
and I’d like to pay particular tribute to Wendy
Conn who is moving to Australia for a time.
Wendy provided me with great guidance
when I arrived and her practical and wise
support to families will be missed. I’m sure
that she and Andy will make a real
contribution to the health of Queenslanders.
All of the team at TWK are committed to
working in ways which align with our
families wishes and your feedback suggests
we largely get this right. I am keen to get
your input on how our service may improve
and any views would be most welcome either
by writing to me at barryd@twk.org.nz or
give me a call on 07 571 4766.
Best wishes
Barry Davies - General Manager
Changes are underway in the MOH approach
and the new disability support model is to be
demonstrated in the Western Bay of Plenty
over the next two years. This initiative
includes more individualised funding, self
assessment and establishment of local area
coordinators to assist people with disabilities.
Although the first wave is addressing home
support, this will be spread into respite and
child development before long. So we will
monitor this carefully and hope to offer our
service in line with your needs.
GM Message
1
Website and
Baking
How to play with
your child
2
Motor
9
Coordination
Staff update
3
Time is the
best gift...
10
Tauranga Early
4
Years Service Hub
TWK
Services and
Help Line
11 &
12
MDAT Update
5
Contact Us
13
Social Stories
6&7
Important
Information
14
Finally from all of us, best wishes for a happy
Christmas and we look forward to working
positively with you and your family/whanau
in 2011.
Ph: 07 571 4766
Mob: 021 466 936
Email: barryd@twk.org.nz
New Website:
www.twk.org.nz
This will go live in early 2011
8
1
It is important for you to value play and set aside playtime with your children. In
addition, you can learn to play in ways that foster their self-esteem as well as
their social, emotional and cognitive development.
By following the suggestions below for effective play, you will provide a
supportive environment that allows your children to try out their imagination,
explore the impossible and the absurd, test new ideas, make mistakes, solve
problems, and gradually gain confidence in their own thoughts and ideas.
An atmosphere of support and approval provides children with opportunities to
communicate their hopes as well as their frustrations. They live in a world where
they have little power and few acceptable ways to express their feelings. Good
play with you can give your children the chance to reduce their feelings of
anger, fear and inadequacy, and provide experiences that enhance feelings of
control, success and pleasure. A flexible approach to play reduces pressure in
your interactions with your children and fosters each child’s development into a
unique, creative and self-confident individual.
Remember:
Follow your child’s lead
Pace at your child’s level
Don’t expect too much - give your child time
Don’t compete with your child
Praise and encourage your child’s ideas and creativity; don’t criticise
Engage in role play and make-believe with your child
Be an attentive and appreciative audience
Use descriptive comments instead of asking questions
Curb your desire to give too much help; encourage your child’s problem
solving
Reward quiet play with your attention
Laugh and have fun
Extract from ‘The Incredible Years’ - A Trouble Shooting Guide for Parents of Children Aged 3-8
by Carolyn Webster-Stratton Ph.D.
2
Staff update
Wendy Conn
We’re sad that Wendy is leaving us at Christmas, after
several years as a Visiting Neurodevelopmental Therapist.
Her positive help
missed.
families and clarity of focus will be
Our best wishes go to her and Andy for a
successful move to Queensland.
Megan Kummer
Megan
is
going
to
take
Wendy’s
role
as
Visiting
Neurodevelopment Therapist, having worked until now in our
Occupational Therapy team.
She is looking forward to
working with young children and her insight, together with
strong empathy, will be a good recipe for success.
Jill Wham
It is a pleasure to welcome back Jill as one of our
Occupational Therapists. Jill left us to focus on the family
cheese business, and her professional strength plus home
location near Katikati will help us to provide the right
service to our families.
TEAM TWK
Four intrepid members of the Te Whanau
Kotahi team - Megan Kummer, Chris
McAlpine, Chris Creighton and Chris
North - recently competed in the Bay of
Plenty Rowing Association’s Corpor8
rowing regatta on Rotorua’s Blue Lake.
Coached by Karin Mary (reception) and
coxed by Courtney Adams, the team came
a very creditable first in one of their
three races.
As most of the other
corpor8 crews were in eights while the
TWK team competed in a quad (4 rowers)
this was well done indeed!
3
Tauranga Early Years Service Hub
Tauranga Early Years Service Hub is a central
point for families with children aged pre-birth
to six years to access health education and
social services.
Tamariki Ora services, Out Reach
immunisation services, Mental Health services
and access to our Doctors clinics based in the
City, Te Puke and Papamoa.
The Hub does not replace existing services; our
aim is to improve access for families to
ultimately improve outcomes for children.
Currently we have several services accessing
and utilising the hub to improve access to
families. We have two midwifery clinics
running Wednesdays and Fridays with
independent midwives Marie Woolsey and
Kylie Taylor. Expectant parents can access a
midwife and have access to relevant
information on services available to them
during their pregnancy and beyond. Karen
Palmer and Raewyn Sherratt, Lactation
Consultants with BOPDHB, run a community
clinic on Thursday’s for clients needing
clinical support for breastfeeding. This service
is available by appointment. Once a month Te
Ha Ora Antenatal programme come to the hub
for an information day, including a tour of the
new maternity ward. Anyone can access this
programme by contacting Rianna on 579 4930.
We also have Tamariki Ora service come in
once a month to run Well Child checks and
immunisation days for their clients. Referrals
are welcome by contacting Wiki on 577 4186.
At the hub our service focus is on improving
access to seven core early years services:
Antenatal services
Wellchild services
Early Childhood Education
Parent Information, education and
support
Home visiting services
Supported referrals to offsite services
Outreach services
The hub is like a citizen’s advice for families of
children aged pre-birth to six years. Our team
members are Tracy Johnson, Service Manager;
Arlene Nuku, Administrator; and Sherrin
Hudson, Relief Administrator. Our team is
passionate and motivated to support families
with access to services. Parents can drop in,
phone, text or email us with their enquiries and
be guaranteed a prompt response. We have
great connections to our community service
providers, participating in the Well Child
Coalition, Breast Feeding Awareness Group
and Te Pa Harakeke (Maori Providers).
Te Manu Toroa Health and Social Services give
us on tap expert advice from services such as
dental care for under fives, B4 schools nurses,
We have two small consultation rooms and
one lounge room available for bookings. Our
rooms are free to book for early years services.
For more information contact Arlene on
ph: 577 4918
mob: 027 817 7267
email: a.nuku@temanutoroa.org.nz
4
MDAT (Multi-Disciplinary Assessment Team) UPDATE
The MDAT team consists of a Paediatrician, Psychologist, Speech and Language
Therapist, and an Occupational Therapist who are assessing children in a variety of
settings.
This team has been set up following the establishment of National Guidelines for
Autism Spectrum Disorder with the aim of speeding up diagnosis of children. It has
been particularly useful for children with borderline criteria.
Feedback from families show that they feel supported through this process and that
the route from assessment through diagnosis to a plan has been faster and more
coordinated.
The team is enjoying working together for the families and can see the benefits from
this approach. We are trying to make it even quicker with the resourcing of a
Secretary / coordinator, and with more therapists involved, the MDAT Team will be
able to streamline the process further.
The MDAT Team welcome feedback to review the assessment process and plan. Te
Whanau Kotahi will be organising this review in 2011 and families will be
contacted to obtain their feedback.
Ali and Megan
5
It’s not easy to deal with meltdowns and
screaming tantrums at the best of times, but what
if it happens on an everyday basis just doing everyday routines?
We see this a lot in children with sensory processing issues. And never
mind the children - the parents nerves are frazzled on a daily basis just
trying to get through the day with their ‘sensory sensitive’ child.
There are no easy answers but here’s one of the tricks up our sleeve:
social stories. We sit down and write a story that the child can relate
to - every child is different so we tailor it to fit using words and
pictures that they can relate to.
These little life affirming stories aim to help many of our children learn
to cope with everyday situations.
The stories:
Explain, inform and instruct - that’s good for children with planning
and sequencing difficulties and those who get anxious when their
routine changes.
Empower - the story provides strategies and ways of managing
during the stressful event.
Reassure - the phrase ‘that’s ok’ is used a lot to reassure the child
about the sensory experience.
Affirm - the story always has a happy ending and affirms the
positive result afterwards.
On the next page is an example of a social story. Some of our other
titles in the series are:
‘I can wash my hair’
‘I can visit the dentist’
‘Too loud!’
‘What happens when I get my hair cut?’
6
I like to have clean teeth.
Then my breath smells good.
First Mum puts toothpaste on my brush.
Next I wet my brush.
I hold it up to my teeth. I clean my teeth
by moving the brush over my teeth.
2.
The toothpaste feels funny.
There!
That’s OK because it makes
my mouth clean.
I can put some water in my mouth
and spit it out again.
Now my teeth are clean and my breath
smells good.
I am good at cleaning my teeth.
4.
7
EXCEPTIONAL PARENT WEBSITE
This website is an online resource which is a direct follow on of the magazine Exceptional Parent. The address is www.exceptionalparent.com
The Exceptional Parent (EP) website (and magazine) provides information, support,
ideas, encouragement and outreach for parents and families of children with disabilities.
The EP site is easy to follow with many linked pages, which share information on
topics such as: Resources, Toys, Technology/Mobility and Healthcare. It provides a
search tool if you have a particular topic you would like information on. You can also
take the opportunity to exchange information with others as well as receive a monthly
newsletter.
EP also offers a large range of books, videos and software for purchase that can be
ordered on line or via a simple phone/fax order form. Please note that the prices are in
US dollars.
Funny faces cupcakes
INGREDIENTS
100g butter or margarine, softened
100g Chelsea Caster Sugar
2 eggs
100g self-raising flour
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
12 cup cake cases
FOR THE ICING
75g butter, softened
175g Chelsea Icing Sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon milk or water
2-3 drops red food colouring and/or 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
Cake decorations
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Place the sieve over the mixing bowl and sift in the flour and cocoa powder, then stir in. Have
your child drop dessertspoonfuls of the mixture into the prepared cases
Bake for 20 minutes or until springy to the touch.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling
rack and allow to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the icing. Place the butter, sugar and milk in a bowl and beat together, then divide into two bowls. Add the colouring to one and the cocoa powder to the other. Mix in, and then
leave them in a cool place.
When the cakes are cool, smooth on the butter icing with the back of a teaspoon. Then decorate
them with lots of different funny faces.
Recipe & Photo: Baking With Tiny Tots, Hachette Livre NZ Ltd, Publisher Hamlyn
8
MOTOR COORDINATION
Some children take longer to learn how
to dress themselves, jump, catch a ball or
ride a bike than other children. Parents
and Kindy teachers know these children
as the ones who walk into doorways or
through the middle of other children’s
work or play. Parents often remember
themselves as being like this, being the
last to be picked for teams and not
feeling confident at sports. However,
parents also say “I just wasn’t sporty” or
“I recognised that I might not be sporty
but I could still be active”.
There
are
many
reasons
for
un-coordination
Developmental
Coordination
Disorder - also known as
dyspraxia (significant delay)
Low tone in the muscles
(muscles feel soft).
Muscles
don’t work fast or hard.
Hyperflexible joints.
Less
sensory feedback to the muscles.
Over weight. Less confidence to
be active.
Lack of experiences and motor
challenges. Too much TV and
sedentary play.
Poor eye tracking skills. Vision
is so important with movement.
Poor motor planning of a new
task.
Don’t know how to
organise their body to be in the
right place.
Assessments help understand a child’s
strengths and weaknesses
Sensory motor integration.
Observations in play
Move ABC - standardised test
for coordination
Functional Skills Observations
Plan for encouraging skills
Choose a goal that will make a
difference for the child and
family i.e. improve dressing
independence or learn to scooter
ride
to
increase
play
opportunities with others.
Increase fitness and strength
Practise of the skill - do it slowly.
Break down the skill and learn
each part. (goal, plan, check, do)
“Just right” activity to challenge
and build confidence. i.e. extra
gym, extra swimming classes,
karate, dance, trampoline
Give more time for decisions
Reduce distractions
Practise with meaning i.e. the
child needs to be engaged and
thinking throughout learning the
new task.
Lighten up. Play to have fun,
not to compare against others
Te Whanau Kotahi staff try to make a
difference for these children by having
fun. We teach parents and teachers to be
positive and create an environment where
children can explore their body skills and
challenge themselves. Many children
with coordination difficulties go on to
ride bikes, be rock climbers and be gym
fanatics.
These kids often notice as adults that
they are still a little clumsy, still take
longer to learn a new task and still don’t
like team sports. But our message is “it
takes a lot of different people to make up
this world”, “find your strengths” and
“find out what you need to do to stay
healthy and fit”.
9
Time is the best gift for children
at Christmas, say experts
If you’re worrying about not being able to afford expensive
presents for the children this Christmas, give yourself a break cheap toys and spending time with children are better for their
development, experts say.
Plunket's national community development manager, Claire Rumble, said
anything the family could do together helped a child's learning. "A parent is a
child's greatest play toy," Mrs Rumble said. "The best thing for children's
learning and development are open-ended toys that can be used in different
ways. Things like paint, and felt pens and paper, for instance, are very
open-ended and cheap," she said.
Megan Fowler, a registered clinical psychologist, said when her son was young
he liked to ride a wooden horse and used a pudding bowl as a helmet. One
Christmas, she bought him a "flash" Mickey Mouse helmet. "He opened his
present and a couple of days later he hopped on the horse and he said, 'Where's
my helmet?' He wanted his bowl back. "I think that was a very good lesson for
me as a parent, that children don't need sophisticated toys, they're quite capable
of using their imagination and learning without that stuff - they just need the
freedom to do it.
"It's keeping it simple, isn't it? Often as adults we put a lot of pressure on
ourselves to provide in a certain way, whereas I don't think that children
necessarily share that expectation. It's about parents spending time with their
children and playing and some children don't even require toys to play”.
"Sophisticated toys, I wouldn't have thought, add anything to children's
experience other than make parents think they're doing something. What
children need are parents who engage with them in play and are outside doing
physical things. Family time and hanging out at the beach and all those kinds of
things are a lot less expensive and probably much more beneficial for everyone."
Psychologist David Stebbing said parents could reduce the pressure to spend by
not setting the benchmark too high from the beginning. Children tend to
remember events that involve doing things with somebody else. Children don't
tend to remember the present they got when they were 8, but they might
remember the holiday they had with the family at the beach or the time they
went camping."
Imaginative Gifts
Let children play with paint, pens and paper.
Have a box of dress-ups for imaginary play.
For toddlers, fill a basket with safe, clean products from around the house
and let them learn about touch and texture.
Play with balloons.
Go to the beach for a family day out.
Play board games.
Courtesy of NZ Herald
10
Services at Te Whanau Kotahi
Referral Coordinator
The coordination of referrals to and
within the service of Te Whanau
Kotahi.
The Coordinator is usually the first
contact a family has with Te Whanau
Kotahi and will assist initially with the
identification of families’ needs and
priorities.
Psychologist
For children and youth aged
0 to16 years
Provide psychological
assessment and treatment for
children with disabilities
Working in close consultation
with families they can provide
therapeutic intervention using
individual, family and group
techniques
Family Support Worker
Our Family Support Worker has a
background in social work and is
experienced in providing support,
advocacy and information to children
with disabilities and their families.
Physiotherapists
For children aged 2½ to 16
years
P h ysio t he ra p ist s will se e
children who have a physical
disability impacting on everyday
life
They will assess children who
have delays in motor or global
development and provide homebased programmes. They also
give support following surgical
and medical procedure
Assessment and supply of equipment
such as standing frames, walking aids
and splints
Occupational Therapists
For children aged 2½ to 16
years
OTs use a holistic approach to
assess and provide home
programmes for children where
their disability impacts on
function and daily living
OTs assist in provision of
equipment and housing
modifications to encourage
independence
Visiting Neurodevelopmental
Therapists
For children aged 0 to 21/2 years
VNTs are a registered
Physiotherapist or Occupational
Therapist
VNTs work in a trans-disciplinary
role assessing all areas of
children’s development and will
do a home-based programme to
maximise children’s potential.
Emphasis is on function
VNTs see premature or low birth
weight babies, children who
have or are at risk of having
developmental delays and
children who have a diagnosed
condition such as cerebral palsy
and genetic disorders
Community Facilitator
Assist the therapists by giving
intensive input through activities
and programmes designed by
therapists. The Community
Facilitator will visit in homes,
preschools and schools
The role provides a valuable link
between families and therapists
and has a good knowledge of
community resources
11
BOP Cleft Lip and Palate Org
Join us 10am on the last Weds of each month.
We welcome all families with cleft lip/palate
in the region. Bring your children. Coffee
groups are a chance to meet other families
who are living a similar experience to you.
Phone 0800 4 cleft for details or go to
www.cleft.org.nz
HELP ON THE WEB
www.111.govt.nz
Website of emergency services. Know what to do before you have to.
www.carers.net.nz
The website of Carers NZ. Planning tools, research,
carer stories, and information of interest to family carers.
www.caregiving.org
The National Alliance for Caregiving studies about
carers and caregiving.
www.nfcacares.org
The National Family Caregivers Association website
has some information on coping with depression, just
for carers.
www.strengthforcaring.com
An online resource and community for carers sponsored
by Johnson & Johnson
www.caringtoday.com
This site is full of stress-busting ideas.
www.careraustralia.com.au
Carers Australia is one of the most effective
national carer bodies in the world.
www.carersuk.org
Download or browse Britain’s updated Carers Strategy.
www.carersireland.com
The Irish Government has committed to a Strategy and
the public consultation findings have been
published. Visit the site for updates
www.ihc.org.nz
Good library resources
12
Te Whanau Kotahi
Contact List
ROLE
DIRECT LINE
EMAIL
RECEPTION
Kate Squire and Karin Mary
571 4768 (phone)
571 4778 (fax)
info@twk.org.nz
General Manager
Barry Davies
571 4766
barryd@twk.org.nz
Office Manager
Sherilyn Horne
571 0591
sherilynh@twk.org.nz
571 4769
anng@twk.org.nz
571 4768
kates@twk.org.nz
karinm@twk.org.nz
571 0593
gilld@twk.org.nz
Chris Creighton
571 4758
chrisc@twk.org.nz
Chris North
571 4764
chrisn@twk.org.nz
Alison Forbes
571 4777
alisonf@twk.org.nz
Tui Poff-Nuku
571 4765
tuip@twk.org.nz
Jill Wham
571 0589
jillw@twk.org.nz
Margo McIntosh
571 4756
margom@twk.org.nz
Sheryl Wagner
571 4756
sherylw@twk.org.nz
Julia Tinker
571 4756
juliat@twk.org.nz
Jo Ford
571 5389
jof@twk.org.nz
Megan Kummer
571 4783
megank@twk.org.nz
Kelly Hope
571 4780
kellyh@twk.org.nz
OFFICE
REFERRAL COORDINATOR
Social Worker
Ann Genner
PSYCHOLOGIST
Chris McAlpine
COMMUNITY FACILITATOR
Gill Duncan
OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST
PHYSIOTHERAPIST
VNT
13
AMNESTY ON LOAN EQUIPMENT (including books)
We would appreciate it if you could return any loan equipment you
may have.
In particular balls, scooter boards, rocker boards, and books as they
are in short supply.
You can either phone Reception to arrange collection or alternatively deliver the equipment to us.
Thank you for your support.
FUNDRAISER
CCS Swim School are selling earplugs
(and the headbands that hold them
on) as a fundraiser for $10 (they retail
at $36). The earplugs are sourced from
Bay Audiology.
To purchase, please contact the
Swim School on 571 4757
CAR PARKING AT OUR OFFICE
If you are visiting us with a child please note
that our disability car park also doubles as a
car park for people with children.
+
14