The independent living movement grew out of the anger and frustration of people with disabilities who were excluded from places of education, work, general retail, worship, and recreation due to barriers in architecture, transportation, and communications. Attitudes about people with disabilities ranged from low or no expectation to the promotion of the superhero, perpetuating the idea that people with disabilities, …
Shared peer advice from polio survivors about what works for them.
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Post-Polio Clinics
WHO ESTABLISHES THE POST-POLIO CLINICS IN THE STATES AND HOW ARE THEY ORGANIZED? Joan L. Headley, MS, Executive Director To establish a post-polio clinic, a need has to be perceived for such a clinic. This need may be generated by the medical community, but more likely the catalyst will come from the demands of the post-polio population, in particular, the …
Support Groups
GOALS AND LEADERSHIP WHAT ARE THEY? WHY DO IT ALONE? WHO NEEDS THEM? WHO CAN BENEFIT? IS OUR GROUP NORMAL? EN ESPAÑOL GOALS AND LEADERSHIP The goal of a support group is to empower its members with the tools necessary to make adjustments needed to continue a life of dignity and independence. Contrary to the image sometimes portrayed in the …
Pregnancy
Example 1: A 33-year-old lady (2011) who had polio is pregnant for the first time. She describes her acute illness and recovery and requests advice: “I had polio when I was 7 months old and was paralyzed throughout my whole body. My parents told me that they fed me using a spoon and a dropper. I could not sit up …
Out to Sea – Accessible Cruising
I love to travel. No, I live to travel, and when I was mobile I did a lot of it, from camping here in the US to sightseeing in Europe. I can divide my travel history into three phases. Phase 1 – “Almost” able-bodied. I could walk distances, climb, pull my own luggage, hop on and off trains. No need …
And Away We Go! Traveling with Mobility Aids
Travel overseas – or anywhere – can be enjoyable, enriching, enlightening, or a complete disaster if your equipment ends up mutilated or at the wrong destination. You should have the adventures, not your wheelchair. I have flown with a power scooter and a manual wheelchair, and have accompanied others who traveled with power wheelchairs. Air travel affords you less control …
Guide for Children in Rural Areas
“Chapter 7: Polio” in Werner, David. Disabled Village Children: A Guide for Community Health Workers, Rehabilitation Workers, and Families. Hesperian Foundation. 2009. David Werner was a co-founder of the Hesperian Foundation. A biologist and educator by training, he has worked as a health activist for the past 40 years in village health care, community-based rehabilitation, and “Child-to-Child” health initiatives in the …
Definitions
Technically, post-polio syndrome is not the same condition as Post-Polio Sequelae/ the late effects of polio. Post-polio syndrome is usually considered a specific new condition. A diagnosis of exclusion is used to determine if a patient has PPS. This means if a survivor of polio is found to have osteoarthritis, for example, that is what the diagnosis will be – osteoarthritis, not PPS. Because …
Travel Resources
New Horizons: Information for the Air Traveler with a Disability Accessible Air Travel: A Guide for People with Disabilities Global Access Travel Aides International Access-Able Travel Source Society for the Advancement of Travel for the Handicapped (SATH) American Society of Travel Agents Scoot-Around North America Disability Travel and Recreation Resources Emerging Horizons: Accessible Travel News Fodor’s Great American Vacations for …
Keeping Mobility Equipment Together
A few months ago I flew to the east coast for a cruise and needed to take both my scooter and manual wheelchair. The problem was that both “vehicles” had loose parts and I was worried that something would get lost in the baggage compartment during the flight. My scooter has two parts that come off easily – the basket …