Organisers: María Agustí Foundation and the Child Hemiparesis Association (Hemiweb).
Collaborating organisation: Ramon Molinas Foundation.
Dates of implementation: 09/12/2015 – 22/12/2015.
In line with those who need it most, a campaign to raise awareness about hemiparesis on the Madrid metro
The Ramon Molinas Foundation collaborated with the María Agustí Foundation, alongside the assistance of Child Hemiparesis Association, to launch an awareness campaign about hemiparesis, featured on the Madrid metro from 9th to 22nd December. The scheme is part of the solidarity campaign In line with those who need it most organised by the Madrid metro and promoted by its employees, an initiative which has supported twelve causes using the twelve underground train lines as a mouthpiece.
Line 7 on the Madrid metro system has been supporting the María Agustí Foundation and Child Hemiparesis Association campaign. For fourteen days, the Metro Channel and the advertising on the orange line have been informing the public and raising awareness about hemiparesis. A stand at Gregorio Marañón metro stop was also set up, attended by the families and volunteers of the Child Hemiparesis Association. Apart from providing information, they have programmed activities in the form of short stories, magic tricks and other surprises for the little ones.
The campaign asks passengers to spread the word about the initiative on social networks by posting a selfie with the tag #hemihéroes. In the snapshot, travellers get to dress up and pose in a superhero’s mask and cape. The María Agustí Foundation and the Child Hemiparesis Association wanted the campaign to highlight the difficulties that children affected by hemiparesis have to face and overcome on a daily basis.
Similarly, the María Agustí Foundation and the Child Hemiparesis Association have also taken the opportunity to provide the public with information on hemiplegia and child strokes.
Hemiparesis and hemiplegia, two forms of child cerebral palsy which affects one in every thousand births
Hemiparesis and hemiplegia are two forms of child cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy in children, according to the Spanish Paediatric Association, is a series of movement and posture development disorders causing limitations in movement, attributed to non-progressive damage on the developing brain during the foetal stage or during the first four years of life.
Hemiparesis is a neurological condition which makes movement difficult in half of the body. Hemiplegia, on the other hand, is when the condition causes total paralysis of one side of the body. Both affect one in every thousand children born and manifests itself in the form of anomalous postures or deformities in the limbs due to weakness in certain muscles and spasticity in others.
Treatment to alleviate its effects should be specific to each person and each type of injury. The most effective way to tackle these disorders is physiotherapy, which helps to coordinate motor function and develop the necessary muscle tone to encourage the personal autonomy of children with hemiparesis and hemiplegia.
Conversely, paediatric stroke occurs when there is sudden, temporary or permanent interruption of blood supply in one part of the brain. It should be pointed out that it is one of the ten primary causes of infant mortality due to the difficulty of diagnosis. According to figures from the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality, it is estimated that the number of yearly cases fluctuates between 2.3 and 13 per 100,000 births. However, during the first four months of a newborn’s life, a paediatric stroke is a lot more common, the number of yearly cases increasing to one per 5,000 births.
The María Agustí Foundation and the Child Hemiparesis Association, two organisations determined to create a network of familial support
The María Agustí Foundation, created at the end of 2013, and the Child Hemiparesis Association, created in 2014, share the project Hemiweb through which the two organisations attempt to raise awareness about the existence of child hemiparesis and hemiplegia. Both organisations work towards creating a familial network, organising a community of people interested in increasing public knowledge about these disorders and improving the quality of life of children with these neurological diseases.
The mission of the María Agustí Foundation and the Child Hemiparesis Association is to provide information, training and assistance for people with hemiparesis and hemiplegia. In addition, the association is resolved to creating links with organisations from other countries and gathering support from professionals, public and private organisations alongside anyone affected by or linked to these disorders in order to improve the prevention, research and the care of this group.
Links of interest: