In June and July 2023, Cerebral Palsy Cymru hosted its 7th EiSMART Infant course at its specialist children’s centre in Cardiff, sharing its world-leading expertise in the treatment of cerebral palsy with therapists from UK and Ireland.
The EiSMART course is a practical and evidence-based course in early assessment and intervention for infants and young children at high risk of neurodevelopmental problems, such as cerebral palsy. Thirty one occupational therapists and physiotherapists attended the training, which provided an opportunity to develop their skills working with babies and their families in neonatal units and post discharge during the first year of life.
Jenny Carroll, Cerebral Palsy Cymru’s Centre Director and Consultant Physiotherapist, explains,
“The first part of the course is delivered remotely, enabling professionals from across the UK to participate in the online education and learning seminars, which are delivered by expert guest speakers from the field of early intervention and which incorporate current scientific knowledge and the latest, theoretical developments. The second part of the course, hosted at our children’s centre in Cardiff, consists of 3 days of intensive practical sessions. In these sessions, the course participants focus on translating their acquired knowledge into practical skills, working with babies and their families with guidance and support from the course tutors, including Cerebral Palsy Cymru’s specialist therapists and Family Support Co-ordinator.”
The practical sessions of the course provide an opportunity for the participating families and clinicians to experience the benefits of intensive early intervention. The sessions are focused and individually tailored to the specific needs of every infant, mainly around promoting and encouraging early interaction, play, infant self-initiated movement, sleep or daily co-occupations such as feeding or dressing. In the lead up to the practical sessions, Cerebral Palsy Cymru works with local neonatal teams to identify families who will benefit from taking part in the practical sessions, often while there are still in their neonatal care.
A number of the babies who have previously been selected to take part in the practical sessions for these courses have consequently either been referred or self-referred to Cerebral Palsy Cymru to receive specialist therapy through the charity’s ‘Better Start, Better Future’ early intervention programme for babies who have or are at high risk of cerebral palsy.
Evan was one of these babies who participated in the recent practical sessions and who is currently receiving specialist early intervention therapy through Cerebral Palsy Cymru.
“Our son Evan was born at 26 weeks and unfortunately at 72 hours of life had medical complications relating to the blood supply to his brain which sadly are not uncommon in extremely preterm babies. This resulted in a weakness in Evan's left side of his body” explains Evan’s mum, Lauren. “After finding out about Cerebral Palsy Cymru, I self-referred Evan and after an initial consultation, he is now regularly attending their children’s centre for specialist early intervention occupational and physiotherapy. The progress of his left-hand side is incredible. Some examples are that he is now able to put both hands on his bottle, not just his right hand. Following the recent Ei SMART early intervention infant course, he is now able to put both feet on his pram bar. He can now also reach out and feel our faces with his left hand too.
“The enhancements we've seen in his left-hand side are down to the extremely valuable early intervention techniques we've learned and which we work hard to put into practice at home. There was a time when we couldn't think too much about his future, what he was or wasn't going to be able to do but we are now very optimistic for his future and that is a wonderful feeling.”
Jenny Carroll added:
“It’s hugely important for us to share our specialist expertise with colleagues from NHS teams, promoting excellence and best clinical practice for infants at high risk of cerebral palsy. Looking to the future, we plan to expand the training we offer to provide a wider range of training options for families as well as clinical professionals at every stage in their career development. Sharing our specialist knowledge and skills with the wider community and NHS teams in this way will help us to develop a new income stream to help fund our free ‘Better Start, Better Future’ early intervention service, as well as meeting our ultimate goal to improve the quality of life of all children in Wales living with cerebral palsy.”
