Free clinic for kids with spina bifida, developmental delays

The International Hospital for Children has been working with Belize and many Caribbean countries over the past ten years. Most of their work caters to children with a wide range of disabilities who cannot afford the exorbitant medical costs for specialized medical attention. A team from the organization is in Belize and News Five’s Delahnie Bain was on hand at the Paediatrics Center on Freetown Road.

Delahnie Bain, Reporting
The clinics being facilitated by the International Hospital for Children are just two out of a number of initiatives each year. Through its Medical Mission Exchange program, this week the hospital is offering free screening for kids with two types of disabilities. The first is developmental delays.

Dr. Cecilio Eck, Paediatrician
“In my assessment I ask about the birth, if there was any issues at birth, if there was any infections growing up and then I do a detailed physical examination to see if there was any physical.”

Delahnie Bain
“What are some of the causes? What are possible causes of developmental delays?”

Dr. Cecilio Eck
“Many and varied. It could be from infections in uteral, it could be from a problem at birth, it could be from after birth; severe infections of the brain and in some cases, like autism we’re not sure; we think there’s a genetic component.”

Delahnie Bain
“What does the process of examining a child with developmental delays entail?”

Dr. Adrian Sandler, Developmental Paediatrician
“Well, essentially getting down and playing with the child, taking a very good history of course, finding out from parents what their concerns are and tracing the development of those concerns over time and then playing with the child just to assess the child’s interactions and play and behaviour.”

The second disability is spina bifida, which is a physical and much more complex condition.

Dr. Adrian Sandler
“Spina Bifida is a birth defect that involves the closure of the spine and its associated with varying degrees of motor impairment or paralysis, often with brain dis-function or hydro-syphilis and sometimes with bowel and bladder control issues, skin problems, orthopaedic problems, and so on.”

Delahnie Bain
“Is it life threatening in any case?”

Dr. Adrian Sandler
“It can be, it can be. It has an appreciable mortality among children, particularly newborns and those in the first year of life may have medical complications that can be life threatening.”

But the clinics are not just for the kids. According to Doctor Sandler, educating the parents is also a very important part of the process.

Dr. Adrian Sandler
“I think also giving them some tools, some ideas about management of associated behaviour problems considering what resources may be available to help support them in their efforts to provide for the child’s needs.”

Delahnie Bain
“Okay and going back to spina bifida, the parents, do they need to get some kind of special education in terms of dealing with that child as well?”

Dr. Adrian Sandler
“Yes, again I think that parents after a baby is born with spina bifida, it’s a steep learning curve because they are learning about the complexities of that condition. Working with the parents on understanding their particular child’s needs and then developing with them, plans for appropriate treatment of those problems.”

Those disabilities can range from skin and orthopaedic issues to mobility problems. In the case of four year old Jorge Torres Junior, he gets around in a wheelchair, but according to his father, he is coping with his disability.

Jorge Torres, Father of Spina Bifida Patient
“Well, he is—my baby born with spina bifida so he get two surgery, two operation so he will and try and get better and he feels good.”

Delahnie Bain
“Alright, how does the treatment affect him?”

Jorge Torres
“Well, he noh got no kind of affecting. He grow good. Everything else normal but nothing noh affect him. Sometimes he get a lee stress when ih want something and if you noh give ah ih get kinda hurting and thing.”

So where do the funds come from to provide these services? We asked I.C.H. representative in Belize, Milagro Garel.

Milagro Garel, Belize Rep., Intl Hospital for Children
“We’re totally funded by special donors and the only fundraising that we do in the country is asking hoteliers to provide packages which we auction in the states. But it’s totally funded from the US.”

Delahnie Bain
“And the cost to the parents of these children?”

Milagro Garel
“It’s free of cost.”

Dr. Sandler has attended to twenty-five children with spina bifida and ten with developmental delays over the past few days. Delahnie Bain for News Five.