Helping parents read their baby's cues lkinross Wed, 05/01/2024 - 14:33 May 01, 2024 By Louise Kinross Erin Dowds helps parents connect with babies who show signs of autism. The early childhood educator and scientist at Holland Bloorview is adapting the Social ABCs—a program where parents are coached to read their toddler’s social cues and engage them through play—for babies aged six to 15 months. “It’s about helping the parent and baby appreciate the way each other sees the world,” Erin says. “Autistic kids have a special way of offering you a cue. From their point of view, it’s really clear ..read more

Check out the new BLOOM! lkinross Fri, 04/26/2024 - 16:12 Apr 26, 2024 By Louise Kinross Read the latest BLOOM. Here are some quotes will draw you into the content: From a Holland Bloorview family leader, on the crisis in finding and affording respite workers:  “I’m not enough. My body gets tired.” (See Parent Talk) From an American comedian, who just authored a graphic novel about a tap-dancing Muslim girl with cerebral palsy: “Growing up, I was the only disabled person in my family and I was the only visibly disabled student at my school... I was also the only brown kid in my class. If ..read more

Play is at the heart of this nurse's career with hospitalized children lkinross Wed, 04/24/2024 - 11:01 Apr 24, 2024 By Louise Kinross Irene Simpson (photo right) recalls tiptoeing into rooms at Bloorview Children’s Hospital to place stockings at the foot of children’s beds on Christmas Eve in the 1990s. “There was one patient who believed in Santa and every time I went in, he was wide awake," she says. "I had to tell him: ‘Santa won’t come if you don’t go to sleep.’ We used to go out and buy tons of gifts for everyone because they weren’t going home, and families didn’t bring gifts in.” Iren ..read more

In Ethiopia, early diagnosis improves care of kids with cerebral palsy lkinross Fri, 04/12/2024 - 09:47 Apr 12, 2024 By Louise Kinross In Canada, children with cerebral palsy are usually diagnosed before they're 18 months old. In Ethiopia, the average age is five-and-a-half years—missing a critical window for therapy that can improve a child’s life. Dr. Selamenesh Tsige (above), a former pediatrician at Addis Ababa University hospital, knew this firsthand. So while completing a fellowship in developmental pediatrics at Holland Bloorview, she worked with staff and residents at Addis Ababa Univ ..read more

In this graphic novel, being different is cool lkinross Tue, 04/09/2024 - 13:16 Apr 09, 2024 By Louise Kinross Shiny Misfits is a children's book about standing out.  It's written by American comedian Maysoon Zayid (above) and illustrated by Colombian Shadia Amin. The protagonist is 10-year-old Bay Ann, a Muslim girl with a disability who is passionate about tap dancing. She craves the spotlight and dreams of going viral. Bay Ann has two besties and a crush on a classmate. He's a slick overachiever she's determined to beat—whether at a talent show, a bake-off or in a school deb ..read more

Respite workers are more difficult to find and afford lkinross Fri, 04/05/2024 - 14:46 Apr 05, 2024 By Louise Kinross During COVID, Gunjan Seth (photo right) became very sick and realized she had to find some respite from caring for her son Ajay (left), now 16, who has autism. Respite care gives parents a short break from the emotional and physical demands of caring for a child with a disability—while enabling the child to participate in activities in the community or learn new skills. But not only was it difficult for Gunjan to find a worker, the cost was prohibitive. Prior to the pandemic ..read more

'The Ride Ahead' is about finding power in community lkinross Mon, 04/01/2024 - 13:23 Apr 01, 2024 By Louise Kinross Samuel Habib is a 24-year-old New Hampshire college student who wants to date. He drives a 350-pound wheelchair and has laboured speech, so dictating what he wants to say to someone who types it into his voice device is painstaking. "I want to figure out how to follow my dreams, but nobody tells you how to be an adult, let alone an adult with a disability," he says. In The Ride Ahead, a film premiering at Hot Docs April 28 and 30, Samuel crosses the United States with his dad D ..read more

Check out the new BLOOM lkinross Mon, 04/01/2024 - 09:24 Apr 01, 2024 By Louise Kinross Take a look at our latest BLOOM. Here are some quotes to draw you into the content:   From the lead of an Ontario study showing adults with intellectual disabilities are significantly more likely to die of three types of cancer than those without, regardless of when it’s diagnosed. ‘I think it's a challenging topic to bring back to health professionals, to say 'You may be contributing to this problem because of how you feel, and how you're acting on those values.' We've actually gotten a lot of pushb ..read more

How to break the ice when you're the new kid at school lkinross Wed, 03/27/2024 - 11:49 Mar 27, 2024 By Louise Kinross Switching schools is tough. In All About Me, a girl with a disability navigates her first day at an elementary school. The book is written by Desiree Da Costa, a former client at Holland Bloorview who is now a staff member registering children and families and scheduling clinics. As a young child, Desiree, who has cerebral palsy, went to our kindergarten program for kids with and without disabilities. Her new children's book is modelled on one she wrote at age six to int ..read more

An au pair and a cottage are part of a family's care plan for their son lkinross Mon, 03/25/2024 - 10:22 Mar 25, 2024 By Louise Kinross John Cooper lives with his wife Celia and children James, 11, and Claire, 9, on the edge of their organic farm in Winterville, Georgia. Celia runs the farm and John is a partner in a family investment company, working from an office at the farm. James has an undiagnosed condition and epilepsy and autism. We first interviewed John in 2020. Since then, the family embarked on a new adventure. They built a 1,150-square-foot cottage on their property with an ..read more