A therapeutic park for special children has been established at the government district headquarters hospital in Tiruvallur. It would be an integral part of the treatment extended to children with special needs at the District Early Intervention Centre (DEIC) at the hospital.
The DEIC is the nodal centre for the district and covers 14 blocks. Each block has two doctors, who visited anganwadi centres and schools to screen children and refer to DEIC for further evaluation and intervention.
The programme is aimed at early detection and management of defects at birth, diseases in children, deficiency conditions and developmental delays, including disabilities in children from birth to age 18. “The Indian Oil Corporation has sponsored the therapeutic park for special children visiting the DEIC. It has come up at a cost of ₹15.6 lakh. We receive 50 children per day, and they will be visiting the park for treatment purposes,” said D. Jagadeesh Kumar, DEIC nodal officer, Tiruvallur. It was inaugurated on Monday.
He said that a sensory garden for special children was established recently at the Government Chengalpattu Medical College Hospital. The objective was to provide stimuli for these children, he said, adding that the park has flowers of attractive colours and plants with different fragrances such as ‘tulsi’ and lemon grass.
The park has a sensory garden, tactile and hearing sensory pathway, muscle development and coordination, vestibular balance, proprioception integration area and a muscle strength and coordination development area, a press release said. The natural greenery provide a conducive atmosphere for special children to play. “We have installed play equipment too in the park,” he added.