Therapy for 30 disabled children in rural Moldova

Here at The Wish, we work in a rural part of Moldova, the poorest country in Europe.  Living in an area this poor affects autistic children in ways we might not think of.  9-year-old David is a good example.  When he was a toddler, his parents had to look for work abroad, and he went to live with relatives.  For any young child, this would be traumatic, but it would hit much harder for an autistic child who finds change particularly difficult.  Around this time, David stopped speaking with words and regressed to using syllables. David's situation is by no means unique.  Quite a number of the families The Wish supports have had no choice but to look for word abroad, often splitting families and causing great stress. 

In addition, a mobile life can make it difficult to access care when it is most needed.  David's family had noticed that their boy had increasing difficulties with following instructions, sitting still and interacting with other children.  At age four he had lost more skills he had acquired and spent much of his time running or playing alone.  When David's family came home for a holiday they were able to consult with The Wish and get advice in their own language.  At first it was very hard for his parents and they tried to minimise the difficulties that David was having.  They preferred to think that it was just a speech delay.  Here at the Wish, we referred David to SOS Autism for a diagnosis.  However, sadly, he wasn't able to see a specialist before the family had to return to Ireland.

Nevertheless, a seed had been planted with David's parents.  Back in Ireland, the family were able to consult with a specialist and David now gets extra support at school as well as out-of-school therapy sessions.  His parents are experiencing many emotions for a second time as David recovers lost skills, like responding to his name.  He is also doing well with his school work.  On a recent visit he was able to show our colleagues at The Wish what he has learned, including playing songs on the piano that he had taught himself.  David's parents hope that he will grow up to be happy, to live independently and to integrate into society.

Other children like Adelina have stayed in Moldova, while her father works abroad.  Her mother is raising Adelina, who has Down Syndrome, and her sister with help from their grandparents.  Despite their situation, Adelina's mother is making a fabulous difference to her daughter's life.  She is fully engaged and attended all the sessions at the Wish so she could learn how best to support her daughter.  When her daughter was younger, she attended kindergarten with her so that she could get an education and be with other children.  She says, "I am very satisfied with the center's services.  Whenever I call for advice, the specialists are willing to give me solutions.  Adelina attends the center's activities with great pleasure twice a week."

With your help we can continue to help our children and their families, whatever their circumstances.

At the moment, our centre is helping 18 children, two thirds of them from villages where children with disabilities have a particularly hard time reaching services.  When a child comes to us, the first thing we do is to assess them across 5 areas of their learning and development: communication skills, practical skills, cognitive, physical and socio-emotional development.  We can then put an individual plan together for them and track their progress.

We teach practical skills in a group with an occupational therapist in the lead.  Recently, the children have been working on doing up buttons and zips and tying shoe laces.  Two thirds of them have made great progress, either managing indpenedently, or with a little help.  The other children have got better at asking for help, which is also a useful skill.

Since many of our children are either not in school, or are only able to attend part-time, it is also important that we offer some general education, delivered in a way that our children can access.  Samuel is a really good example of the effect this extra help can have.  Samuel is eight and has Down Syndrome and associated heart problems.  The picture of him here is typical - he is always to be found with a book.  And yet, his mother, Viorica says, 

“For years, we searched for a kindergarten and school where Samuel would be treated like any other child. Yet,we were constantly told 'your child can't' and 'isn't capable,' facing negative attitudes at schools. Accepting his diagnosis was also a long struggle. However, after visiting specialists at The Wish and undergoing several therapy sessions, Samuel began to recognise colours and pronounce words. His love for reading and playing has grown, and with it, his confidence. 

I have faith that we will persevere, I believe in my son's progress, and I cannot imagine our future without this Centre.” 

Viorica is not just one of our parents, she is also a valued volunteer at our centre.

Sadly, our centre is not able to work at full capacity, but we are hopeful that in the future we will be able to provide these services to thirty children or more.  The progress Samuel and his peers are making encourages us.