Patrick

Patrick’s has several contractures to his joints, a contracture is where a joint becomes permanently fixed in a bent or straightened position, completely or partially restricting the movement of the affected joint. Patrick has contractures in his ankles, knees, hips and his left wrist, meaning that he is unable to walk and do a lot of basic self-care activities. Patrick’s Mum not knowing what best to do to help her son did not seek medical or therapeutic interventions until he was 14 years old and prior to this she tried spiritual and herbal methods of healing.

Family First recognise the great potential Patrick and his family have and want to help them get the specialist care they need. We have started Patrick with biweekly Speech and Language Therapy to work on his clarity of speech, through oral motor activities and increasing his vocabulary. He also has a tutor coming once a week to work on his academic development, fine motor skills and daily living skills. And excitingly, Patrick has been accepted to start at a mainstream school, which hosts both academic and social opportunities which Patrick craves. The school transition will be done gradually to develop his confidence and we will work alongside the school to ensure Patrick has special measures in place to access the curriculum. 

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Following 6 months of serial casting. Patrick is now having weekly Physiotherapy sessions where Bismark is working with Patrick to reduce stiffness of joints, build up muscle tone and gradually build his confidence to begin to stand and be more independent in his movement. We are arranging for Patrick to have surgery on his left ankle  and following this he will need orthotics to enable him to stand with support. Patrick spends most of his day sitting in a wheelchair and has a slight scoliosis to his spine so we will have an adaptable chair made locally which will offer Patrick posture support.