A Way of Life for the Handicapped Child
- Author:
Eirene Collis. Faber & Faber. 10s. 6d.
Mrs. Collis’s book is notable as the first publication in this country devoted expressly to the problem of habilitating children suffering from Cerebral Palsy.
Amidst an increasing general interest in problems concerning the handicapped, the attention which Cerebral Palsy is beginning to claim is in a great measure a result of the persistence with which Mrs. Collis has pursued, the work on which her book is based. In the past, the paucity of literature and the brevity of references when found has tended to stultify rather than stimulate interest in this subject. Now, however, that interest has been aroused, there is a demand for something other than vague statement, and this all too short volume comes at a good time.
Mrs. Collis has written primarily from the kinesiological point of view, since her speciality is on that side. Nevertheless, the underlying and express emphasis is throughout on the necessity for keeping in mind the ultimate aim of treatment, viz., to enable a child to be as normally active, both mentally and physically, as possible. To quote the author:
” Everything that one has learned from life is useful in training the child with Cerebral Palsy. The more he is regarded as a whole and trained with a critical eye for the function of the part, the more successful will the training be’’’’
To achieve this aim, it is obvious, as is continually stressed in this book, that successful therapy depends on a sound differential diagnosis. Emphasis on the necessity for carrying out detailed functional and joint examinations not only after the preliminary classification into one or other of the five main groups has been made, but also from time to time as treatment proceeds, underlines a fundamental principle of the new approach to the Cerebral Palsy problem.
The sixteen chapters touch topics covering a wide field and include reference to some psychological factors, the aetiology of the main Cerebral Palsy types, kinesiological and motor re-education methods, appropriate occupational and speech therapy, and general care. There is a brief, but useful illustrated chapter on mechanical aids and equipment; a list of routine exercises; a short chapter on recording and a tabulation of procedures in muscle and joint motion examinations.
Despite her enthusiasm, Mrs. Collis does not lose sight of two important factors that must be borne in mind. First, that the ultimate success of any training depends on the mentality of the patient. Provided this is potentially good, he may be trained in spite of even a severe degree of physical handicap, while, where inferior intelligence is coupled with even a comparatively mild physical handicap, much time can be wasted to little good purpose. Secondly, even when astonishing success may ultimately follow treatment given along the lines of the new approach described, such success does not come suddenly, but only after patient and persistent effort, as much on the part of the patient as of the therapist.
There are parts of the book which will almost certainly present difficulty to the average reader. Such people should, however, obtain sufficient help from the explanation of technical terms, given in the glossary which is appended, to read the book with understanding and considerable profit. The addition of a bibliography is a welcome guide to further reading. M.I.D.
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