[SENco-forum] RE: Support from BECTA/Physio availability or costs

Lack of Physio etc.,  Here for once I have been lucky.  My daughter has
Hyper Joint Mobility (double jointed) that causes injury and pain in normal
and sport activities.  Her favourite is almost putting out her kneecap by
going upstairs at speed or two at a time!

I know. The rest of us would be more sensible.  Anyway after 3 lots of
physio - for scoliosis (bent spine), HMS calf injury and the wobbly knees
(to avoid surgery) she has now been put on the Lifestyles Referral
Programme.  This is to take the pressure of the Physio and other services.

It involves visiting the council run sport centre and having a programme
tailored to your needs.  The guy in charge has additional training & attend
the NHS Initial Cardiac programme at the hospital gym for 10 weeks (such as
my husband has just been on!).  After this patients are encouraged to
transfer over to his sole care for the next 20 weeks at the sports centre.

Everyone has heart & blood pressure monitoring through out and it is to
change their lifestyle in order to support whatever condition they have been
referred for.  For my daughter it includes swimming, light weight work and
pilates for the HMS and knees, but also includes a cardiac programme for her
heart.  As if she didn't have enough problems at the moment she has been
diagnosed with the same Familial Hyperlipidemia that caused her Dad's heart
attack.

It is a brilliant idea and all the sessions of everything she attends for 20
weeks at half price.  For her it will be a lifetimes work as exercise is one
of the only proven ways to raise the HDL (good Cholesterol) that her body
just doesn't make or look after properly.

It does raise questions again about who pays.  In the cross over between
medical conditions and educational settings who should pay for
physiotherapy, or light/ sound or speech therapy etc.,  I am happy to pay
for her 20 week programme as it will make the difference between heart
attack and possible early death at 55 however careful she is with her diet,
or a good quality of life.  On the other hand she is saving the NHS a huge
amount of money that would otherwise have been spent on correcting her spine
and her knees by surgery, so would it be too much if they had borne the cost
(£200).

Sharon Tringham