Madagascar | Overcoming developmental delays through active play
Severe malnutrition has delayed Sosiany’s growth and development. Humanity & Inclusion’s specialists are using stimulation therapy and active play to help her prevent long-term consequences.
“When Sosiany was 3 months old, I noticed that she wasn’t developing normally,” explains her mother, Naliny. “She wasn’t able to hold her head up. Then, at 6 months, she could not sit up on her own.”
Concerned, Naliny brought Sosiany to see a doctor who determined that she was severely undernourished, and it was interfering with her growth and development. At 17 months old, Sosiany’s mental and motor development are more similar to those of a 6-month-old baby. These developmental delays can worsen over time and lead to irreversible disabilities if left untreated.
The doctor prescribed the child a nutritional supplement and referred her to the rehabilitation center at the regional hospital in Tuléar to see if Sosiany could benefit from Humanity & Inclusion’s stimulation therapy.
Early childhood stimulation therapy for undernourished babies and young children is a form of strategic active play that stimulates motor skills and cognitive development by engaging the child with toys and providing individual attention. Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation specialists have trained physical therapists in Tuléar, Madagascar, to use the technique alongside emergency nutrition initiatives to give children the best chance of survival, improve quality of life and prevent the long-term consequences of undernourishment.
Rehabilitation disguised as play
Recently, Sosiany attended her second session with Denis, a physical therapist at the rehabilitation center who was trained in stimulation therapy by Humanity & Inclusion in October 2021.
“In the beginning, we let the child play with whatever they are drawn to,” Denis says. “The first goal is to get them comfortable. Then, you choose activities depending on the specific objective of each child. For example, Sosiany is not able to sit on her own, so we play in positions that train her leg muscles and get her used to sitting for longer periods of time.”
Each activity plays a specific role in Sosiany’s development. Holding a toy above her head will help her practice reaching. Drawing will start to improve her grasp. Simple actions like kicking a ball or pushing a toy car help develop her movement, interactions and reflexes.
Throughout each session, Denis also explains to Naliny how to continue the exercises with her daughter at home.
“Sosiany doesn’t have any toys of her own, but her mother says she likes to drum on a basin they have for washing clothes,” Denis explains. “To encourage her to crawl, she can simply move the basin further away. Then, Sosiany will have to crawl over to it before she can play on it. We can adapt any activity to stimulate the child, you just need to know what she likes to do.”
After about five sessions of stimulation therapy, children generally start to show improvements, but the length of therapy is adapted to the needs of each child based on their progress.
Inspired by the care her daughter is receiving, Naliny says she hopes Sosiany will grow up to be a doctor so that one day she can heal others.
Haiti | Earthquake survivor recovers his self-confidence
Jérôme, 55, lost his home and all of his belongings when an earthquake struck Haiti in August 2021. On top of that, he has health issues. Humanity & Inclusion’s teams are providing physical rehabilitation and psychosocial support to help him overcome these challenges.
Read moreMadagascar | Stimulation therapy helps undernourished children
Odile faces challenges in affording enough food for her son, Nasolo. Humanity & Inclusion provides stimulation therapy to help children like Nasolo overcome the consequences of undernourishment.
“My 16-month-old son, Nasolo, is underweight for his age,” Odile explains. “He struggles to hold things in his hands and he cannot walk yet. A community agent came to our home and found that Nasolo was malnourished.”
In Madagascar, Humanity & Inclusion trains community agents to recognize signs of malnutrition and other vulnerabilities in developing children. They then visit communities in the areas surrounding Tuléar, where malnutrition is common due to high poverty rates and dwindling food supply in an ongoing drought. The community agents identify children who may be in need of stimulation therapy and support from Humanity & Inclusion. If left untreated, malnutrition can cause developmental delays in young children which may lead to long-term disabilities or neurological disorders.
After meeting with the community agent, Odile was encouraged to enroll Nasolo in early childhood stimulation therapy at the Tuléar hospital rehabilitation center, where Humanity & Inclusion uses strategic play-based rehabilitation to encourage physical and cognitive development in undernourished children.
Families face food insecurity
Nasolo’s mother, Odile, is only 18 and is raising her son as a single parent. She has not been able to find work, which makes it difficult for her to provide sufficient food for her only child. At the moment, she is dependent on her mother to care for both her and Nasolo.
Odile lives more than 30 miles from the rehabilitation center and has to travel for an hour and a half to bring Nasolo to his stimulation therapy sessions. To support her and other families with children in stimulation therapy, Humanity & Inclusion covers food, transportation and hotel costs, in case families need to stay overnight, as well as the cost of the rehabilitation services.
Nasolo recently attended his third stimulation therapy session with the physical therapists and continues some exercises when he is at home with his mother. He is already starting to see some results.
“He can’t walk yet, but he is now able to hold things in his hand,” Odile says. “He loves toys and he likes to come here where he can play. I am very happy now that he has started to show progress.”
Afghanistan | ‘I feel like I’ve got my legs back’
After an unexploded ordnance accident, Imran receives rehabilitation care and new artificial limbs from Humanity & Inclusion’s specialists.
Imran, 7, was playing with his friends when the imaginable happened.
“I was climbing the hill in Kohak village with my friends,” he explains. “I saw something strange and when I touched it, it blew up.”
Imran’s father took him to Mirwais Regional Hospital, where he was admitted for surgery. Imran’s injuries were so severe that doctors amputated both of the boy’s legs.
As Imran recovered from the operation, he was referred to Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation center in Kandahar, Afghanistan. There, measurements were taken to make him two custom-fit artificial limbs. After he was fitted, Humanity & Inclusions’s physical therapists helped him strengthen his muscles to walk again. He also received a wheelchair to assist him with his daily living.
Imran is returning back to his routine.
“I feel like I’ve got my legs back,” Imran exclaims. “I can walk again and play with my friends.”
Imran’s father, who is a driver for a living, is committed to supporting his family and his son’s recovery.
”I am committed to getting him back to school and will support him to finish his studies,” he says.
HI's rehabilitation center
Located in Kandahar, Humanity & Inclusion's rehabilitation center treats people with conflict-related injuries, often caused by explosive devices. Survivors of serious accidents, patients with diabetes-related amputations and people with polio are also among those receive physical therapy services. The center is staffed by 52 professionals specializing in physical therapy or psychosocial support work. It is the only rehabilitation center in southern Afghanistan.
Afghanistan | After missile attack, Amina walks again
Amina, 7, was seriously injured in a missile attack during heavy fighting in Afghanistan in July 2021. She’s learned to walk again, with rehabilitation care and an artificial limb from Humanity & Inclusion.
Amina was walking to school with her parents and sisters when the missiles struck. Her mother and two of her sisters were killed in the attack.
Her father was also injured, causing paralysis of his right arm. He lost his job. To survive, he now sells chewing gum and cookies from a cart outside his house and is supported by relatives and neighbors. (Amina and her father are pictured above.)
Amina is close with her father, who is now a single parent after his wife’s untimely death. He promises to be there for his daughter, to play with her and to help her overcome the trauma of losing her mother and sisters.
Learning to walk again
Amina’s right leg was so severely injured that she required a surgical amputation. Since January 2022, Humanity & Inclusion’s physical therapy specialists have been teaching her to walk again.
The team measured her leg to make a customized artificial limb, and gave her mobility exercises to do at home. She was also given a walking frame to help her get around on her own until her artificial leg was ready.
After a few weeks, Amina received her artificial limb and began rehabilitation sessions at Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation center in Kandahar to help her adapt to it.
When she started her rehabilitation, Amina was sad and frustrated. She found it challenging to walk with her artificial limb without the help of a walking frame. But the many exercises paid off, and today she can walk on her own.
Amina’s most recent visit to the rehabilitation center was in March for a consultation and some minor repairs to her artificial limb. She will continue to visit the center regularly to replace and repair her artificial leg.
Humanity & Inclusion’s physical rehabilitation center in Kandahar is the only facility in the area where people with disabilities are provided with services free of charge.
HI's rehabilitation center
Located in Kandahar, Humanity & Inclusion's rehabilitation center treats people with conflict-related injuries, often caused by explosive devices. Survivors of serious accidents, patients with diabetes-related amputations and people with polio are also among those receive physical therapy services. The center is staffed by 52 professionals specializing in physical therapy or psychosocial support work. It is the only rehabilitation center in southern Afghanistan.
Afghanistan | Rehabilitation center serves civilians with conflict-related injuries
Irshadullah is one of the countless civilian victims of violence in Afghanistan. As is too often the case, his injury left him with a permanent disability. Humanity & Inclusion was there to help him start over.
In July 2021, Irshadullah was cycling near his home when his left leg was hit by a bullet fired from an armed convoy. His father took him to the regional hospital in Mirwais where his leg was amputated. He was then referred to Humanity & Inclusion’s physical rehabilitation center in Kandahar for physical therapy and an artificial limb.
For a week, Irshadullah was led through physical therapy exercises to strengthen his amputated leg so he would be able to wear an artificial limb. Specialists then took a mold of his leg to make a customized device.
“I’m happy with my artificial leg,” Irshadullah says. "I can go about my daily activities normally and I can walk without difficulty."
Irshadullah can also return to school and help his father with the garden again.
HI's rehabilitation center
Located in Kandahar, Humanity & Inclusion's rehabilitation center treats people with conflict-related injuries, often caused by explosive devices. Survivors of serious accidents, patients with diabetes-related amputations and people with polio are also among those receive physical therapy services. The center is staffed by 52 professionals specializing in physical therapy or psychosocial support work. It is the only rehabilitation center in southern Afghanistan.
Jordan | Judy’s mobility improves with physical therapy
Judy, 8, lives with leg paralysis and has difficulty with certain movements. For weeks, she has been attending rehabilitation sessions with Humanity & Inclusion to improve her mobility and gain more independence.
Judy lives in Amman, Jordan, with her mother and her sister. When she was younger, a bacterial infection eventually caused her to lose mobility in her legs and develop a disability that affects her movement.
“She has a neurological condition called hydrocephalus and weakness in her lower limbs, so she uses a wheelchair to get around,” explains Suhad Abood, Humanity & Inclusion’s community-based rehabilitation manager. “She was unable to sit up on her own and has difficulty grasping objects. Now, Judy participates in rehabilitation sessions, physical therapy sessions and occupational therapy sessions to help improve her movement and become more independent.”
After initially seeking rehabilitation services at a nearby hospital, Judy’s mother learned of the new Primary Health Center, which opened in Amman in March 2022. The first of its kind, the center serves around 600 people per day and is easier for many members of the community to access since the hospital is often crowded. At the center, Humanity & Inclusion provides rehabilitation services such as physical and occupational therapy, and services that support people with cerebral palsy, survivors of strokes and individuals with mobility challenges.
Judy has been visiting the center once a week for seven weeks and has already begun to see changes. Her mother says that Judy’s hand movements have improved to where she can now catch objects, and she is able to sit up without requiring support.
During a recent visit to the center, Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation specialists learned that Judy had never attended school.
“She is 8 years old, which is two years late for starting school,” Abood explains. “We contacted the Amman directorate to approve her registration, and now she will officially be enrolled in school next semester.”
These actions are funded by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.
Ukraine | Explosive weapons cause complex injuries requiring rehabilitation
Gaëlle Smith, emergency rehabilitation specialist for Humanity & Inclusion, explains the severity of blast injuries in eastern Ukraine and the importance of early rehabilitation for recovery.
Read moreWorld Refugee Day | Rashid walks with ease after surgery, physical therapy in Kenya
June 20 is World Refugee Day. Humanity & Inclusion supports tens of thousands of refugees each year, like Rashid who lives in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya.
When Rashid was a baby, he and his family fled violent fighting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2018. Rashid, now 4, was just a toddler when his mother, Julienne, quickly realized that he had difficulty walking.
“He didn't walk like the other children,” she says. “I couldn’t explain where this comes from because nobody in the family has the same problem."
At the refugee camp, Rashid experienced isolation from other children who didn’t understand his disability. He wasn’t able to play with them.
"The other children rejected him and made fun of him,” Julienne explains.
Post-surgical rehabilitation
Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation team at Kakuma camp diagnosed Rashid with a deformity affecting his knee. In September 2021, the boy underwent corrective surgery on his legs at the Kakuma Mission Hospital, which works in collaboration with Humanity & Inclusion. Once his casts were removed, Rashid was able to walk without any difficulty. He’s continuing rehabilitation exercises to strengthen his muscles and improve his mobility.
Julienne is thrilled to see her son’s improved functioning. Rashid has returned to school, where he has made many friends. He is very popular with his teachers, who find him friendly and energetic.
"I'm very happy to stand up without the other kids making fun of me,” Rashid says.
Humanity & Inclusion at Kakuma
Located in northwestern Kenya, Kakuma refugee camp was established in 1992. It hosts over 200,000 refugees from 13 different countries. Over 40% of the refugees are South Sudanese and over 30% are Somalis.
Humanity & Inclusion assists over 15,000 people in Kakuma camp. The organization provides rehabilitation, mental health and psychosocial support. It also runs a child protection program. These actions are funded by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.
Afghanistan | Fazal recovers from mine accident through rehabilitation
Fazal, 18, lost his leg in a mine accident. Humanity & Inclusion is providing him with rehabilitation care.
When he was 16, Fazal worked in a garden in Kandahar, picking pomegranates. One day, the vehicle that Fazal and his co-workers were traveling in on their way to work ran over a mine on the side of the road. The explosion was terrible. Fazal was severely wounded. One of his co-workers was killed and two others were injured.
Fazal spent more than two months in a hospital in Kabul, where he underwent surgery to amputate his leg.
At Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation center in Kandahar, a team of specialists immediately provided him with crutches so that he could get around on his own. Measurements were taken of his amputated leg so he could be fitted with an artificial leg. Fazal worked with experts to complete physical therapy exercises to strengthen his muscles and adapt to walking with the artificial limb.
“Now I can do my daily tasks by myself without the help of a member of my family,” Fazal explains. "I feel hopeful about the future."
Opened in 1996, Humanity & Inclusion’s rehabilitation center in Kandahar treats people injured by explosive weapons. It is the only rehabilitation center in southern Afghanistan. Survivors of other accidents, individuals with diabetes-related amputations and people with polio are among other patients treated by the 52 professionals specialized in physical therapy or psychosocial support at the clinic.