GVI  Phang  Nga  Achievement  Report    

November  2015    GVI   Healthcare   (Community   Projects):   Supporting   local   children   and   young   adults   who  have  physical  and  learning  disabilities.      United  Nations  Millennium  Development  Goal:  8.  Global  Partnership  for  Development    Summary    GVI  Phang  Nga  has  a  very  strong  partnership  with  the  Camillian  Social  Centre,  Takuapa.  It  is  the  main  focus  for  volunteers  who  come  for  the  Healthcare  program,  which  is  one  of  the  2  programs  offered  under  our  Community  projects  banner  (the  other  is  Teaching  Children).  Our  Healthcare  Volunteers  spend  time  engaging  with  the  children  and  young  adults  at  the  centre  who  have  learning  and  physical  disabilities.    

This  month,  the  report  will  include  information  on  how  our  partnership  continues  to  be  strong  and  make  a  difference  in  the  lives  of  the  children  and  how  we  have  introduced  language  therapy  at  the  Social  Centre  enabling  these  children  more  opportunities  and  resources  to  be  able  to  communicate  their  needs.        

 Report    The  Camillian  Social  Centre  provides  children  with  day  care/respite,  physical  therapy  and  opportunities  for  social  engagement  and  development, their services  are  provided  free  of  charge  and  without  any  discrimination  of  race  or  religion. The  Camillian  Social  Centre  is  the  only  organisation  of  its  kind  in  far  southern  Thailand,  with  2  larger  sister  centres  in  Rayong  and  Chiang  Rai. They  support  children  and  youth  who  are  living  with  disabilities,  most  commonly  Autism,  Downs  Syndrome,  Cerebral  Palsy  and  physical  disabilities.    Healthcare  Volunteers  spend  approximately  9  hours  per  week  at  the  Camillian  Social  Centre  with  the  aim  to  enhance  the  emotional,  social,  psychological  and  physical  functioning  of  the  children  and  general  wellbeing  through  structured  arts  and  crafts  activities  as  well  as  through  play.  This  is  achieved  through  a  routine  of    

• Arriving at the centre and greeting all of the Children • Doing stretches with the Children (during this time one of the older Children receives

a one on one English lesson which is tailored to his interests). • Introduction of the weeks topic with flashcards and floor games • Lunch • Relax/Sofa time • Physical Group Games • Craft (related the weeks topic) • Farewelling all of the children

 

   Something   we   had   been   noticing   was   the   difficulty   we  were   having   communicating   with  some   of   the   children   due   to   their   disabilities   and   we   also   noticed   these   children   were  seeming  to  become  frustrated  as  they  wanted  to  communicate  with  us.    One   of   our   former   Field   staff  members,   Sharne   Lucas   is   a   qualified   speech   therapist   and  before   she   finished   up   in   her   role   here   5   weeks   ago   she   put   together   a   visual  communication  book  for  one  the  children  as  well  as  a  communication  board  for  all  children.  She  also  put  together  an  emotions  board.    The  communication  book  is  made  for  a  particular  child  who  cannot  speak  at  all,  she  usually  grunts  and  points  in  order  to  have  her  needs  met.  Her  book  includes  photos  of  the  different  rooms   and   equipment   in   the   centre   as   well   as   her   individual   belongings   and   the   other  children.  She   is  able   to  point   to   the  photos   to  assist  her   in  communicating  her  wants  and  needs  to  us.    The  Communication  board  is  an  A4  sized  sheet  with  small  pictures  of  basic  communication  needs   like   me,   you   us   and   I   like,   don’t   like,   stop   and   go.   There   are   about   24   different  pictures   and   pointing   to   these   as   you   speak   to   the   children   can   really   assist   their  understanding   in  what  you  are  saying   to   them.  We  also  encourage  them  to  use   it  as   they  communicate  to  us.    The   emotions   book   is   a   variety   of   pictures   displaying   pictures   of   faces   with   different  emotions.  The  children  love  saying  the  different  emotions  and  have  now  developed  a  good  understanding  of   their  meanings.  They  can  point   to   these  pictures   to  tell  us  how  they  are  feeling  or  to  ask  us  how  we  are  feeling.    We  also  started  implementing  a  Daily  board  this  Month,  this  is  a  whiteboard  where  we  go  over  what   our   day   is   going   to   look   like.  We   now   start   everyday   by   going   through   this,   it  includes  the  day  of  the  week,  the  weather  and  pictures  of  the  things  we  do  during  the  day  and  the  children  have  to  put  them  in  order.  This  has  been  so  well  received  by  the  children  and  we  now  make  sure  we  start  every  day  with  it.    Lastly  we  have  put  together  language  therapy  training  for  Healthcare  Volunteers  to  undergo  when  they  arrive.  This  is  to  assist  them  to  understand  the  different  resources  we  have  put  together  to  use  at  the  Camillian  Social  Centre  and  teach  them  how  to  use  them  effectively.                          

 

         Something  else  we  have  been  able  to  assist  the  Camillian  Social  Centre  with  this  Month   is  their  charity  bike  ride.  This  is  an  annual  event  held  to  raise  funds  for  the  Centre.    GVI  Phang  Nga  has  shown  a  great  deal  of  support  for  this  event  and  this  year  is  its  3rd  year  running.    In  the   lead  up  to  the  event  staff  assisted  Somchai,  who  runs  the  centre   in  sending  emails,  proof  reading  flyers  and  posters  for  the  event.  As  well  as  helping  with  getting  promotional  photographs  for  the  event.    Staff  members  Deb  Simpson  and  Talia  Gale  participated   in   the  bike   ride  and  were  able   to  raise  over  13,000  baht  together.    Staff  members  Carlee  Vandenberg  and  Kelsie  Hamilton  also  supported  the  event  by  bringing  some  of  the  volunteers  along  and  engaging  with  the  children  while  the  staff  were  busy  with  the   event  which   saw   over   250   people   race   25kms   from   Khao   Lak   to   the   Camillian   Social  Centre  were  a  lunch  was  put  on  by  many  of  the  local  hotels  who  sponsor  the  centre.    It  was  a  fantastic  event  that  GVI  Phang  Nga  is  proud  to  support  and  hope  to  continue  to  do  so  in  the  coming  years.    You  can  get  firsthand  experience  in  this  project,  or  read  more  about  the  amazing  work  our  volunteers  are  doing  within  the  local  community  by  visiting  our  website.  Please  like  our  Facebook  page,  check  out  our  blog  and  follow  us  on  twitter  for  the  latest  information  straight  from  the  field.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Healthcare  Volunteers  introducing  the  Daily  Board  and  emotions  book  to  the  Children  at  Camillian  Social  Centre  

 

 

 

 

We  use  the  communication  boards  at  craft  time  so  the  children  can  use  them  to  tell  us  what  they  need  from  us  

 

 

 

Promotional  Photos  of  Camillian  Children  and  Staff  with  GVI  Volunteers  and  Staff  for  the  Annual  Ride  for  Children  Charity  Fundraiser  

 

 

 

 

Staff  members  Carlee,  Deb,  Talia  and  Kelsie  and  Volunteer  Sophie  at  the  starting  point  of  the  race.  

 

 

Starting  point  of  the  race,  Police  Boat  in  Khao  Lak.  Deb  and  Talia  ready  to  race!