Problems Of Work For Spastics

Press, Volume C, Issue 29568, 18 July 1961, Page 2

Problems Of Work For Spastics

The fitting of a spastic to a job, or sometimes a job to a spastic is difficult. The varieties of disability are so numerous that there is often a great lack of knowledge among those dealing with the education and training of spastics as to what activities are required in various jobs, says an article from the Department of Health.

Fiftydive per cent., or approximately 700 persons of normal or slightly subnormal intelligence are victims of cerebral palsy in this country and they should be eligible for employment provided their physical handicap is not too severe. Those whose I.Q.'s are sufficiently high can do well in professional and executive positions. But the road to success for those people is long and difficult. It requires courage and determination. There would appear to be no short-cut to finding suitable employment for spastics. It usually comes down to trial and error. The placing of the cerebral palsied in the most suitable jobs is of paramount importance and is absolutely necessary if placement is going to be successful. On the ether hand, the problem of employment of spastics has been eased considerably in the last few years. Those charged with the duty of educating and teaching the disabled have to do so with the abject of ulti-

mate employment of their patients in mind. State and private organisations are much concerned with the rehabilitation of cripples as a policy and the attitude of employers toward these people has changed. Most employers of labour have realised that it is what a man can do rather than what he cannot do which is important, and many of them have found by experience that the disabled employee is just as competent as the normal man, provided he is in the right job—a post in which his disabilities do not interfere with the proper carrying out of the job. In securing the employment of spastics it is of vital importance to take into account not only the physical and physiological disabilities but also the spastic’s own attitude to work. The abrupt change from the comparitively easy and short hours of work at school with its protective environment to the eight-hour day and 40-hour week of industry is one which most spastics find difficult. Employers, management and foremen may not realise this and many placements may fail on this account. The nature of cerebral palsy is so complex that the problem of employment is much more difficult than with other forms of physical disability. Spastics form only one group of cerebral palsy in which there is an unwanted stiffness in the muscles. Other forms of cerebral palsy show uncontrolled, unwanted movements which interfere with desired functional movements. Others again display a tremor or shaking movement only at times when they want to carry out some intricate operation. All these conditions are caused by brain damage which occurs before, during, or shortly after the birth of a child, and according to the extent and severity of the damage, so the disability can vary from minor difficulty to complete helplessness. The brain damage may extend to centres which interpret sensations of touch, hearing and sight, or to those which are concerned with intelligence. The difficulty in controlling muscle movement can affect the muscles of the face and tongue causing frequent grimacing and difficulty of speaking clearly. It is necessary for closer co-ordination to be developed between those engaged in the treatment and education of spastics on one side and industry on the other. At present each is largely ignorant of the other’s requirements. There are very real difficulties in securing the employment of spastics but these difficulties are not unsurmountable. The numbers involved may be small, but the principle of the right to work remains, and all right thinking people should co-operate. In Christchurch, the Adult Cerebral Palsy Society bears this problem and others very much in mind. For the welfare of spastics it is organising ' a street day appeal to be held in the city on July 28.