|
|
|||
|
|
|
||
Healing Inside and Out |
|
By Nicole Hytinen Marketing Coordinator Six-year-old Devin Folgate was your average kid with no worries. He loved playing with his twin sister, Tara, on the swing set in their backyard. However, their playing was interrupted in early April of 2002 when he developed a sinus infection. He was not properly medicated since his doctor did not properly diagnose the problem. His condition lead to something much more serious and he was experiencing a fever, a sore neck and nausea. Days later, when Devin began having mini strokes, he was taken to Rockford Memorial, where he lay in a comma for four days. When he woke up, Devin was paralyzed on his right side, his brain had been damaged and he was deaf in one ear. Doctors discovered Devin had bacterial meningitis. Bacterial meningitis. It's a scary disease - not only because it's life threatening, but it is also very difficult to recognize. The symptoms are similar to those of a common virus, while bacterial meningitis is actually a very serious infection of the fluid in the spinal cord and the fluid that surrounds the brain. One in ten cases is fatal and one in seven survivors are left with a disability such as deafness or brain injury. Once he was treated for the infection and it had cleared out of his system, Devin's mother took him to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where they worked on his speech, mobility and living skills. Tara, Devin's twin sister, had a hard time dealing with the separation. It was the first time the two had ever been away from one another and they were best friends. She was able to visit Devin when he came out of the coma. He smiled and giggled when he saw her. "She was the only one who could get a reaction from him at that time," their mother remembered. Tara was very worried about her twin. The doctors were uncertain as to whether he would ever be able to speak coherently again. Less than a month later, the weekend after Mother's Day, Devin regained feeling and movement on his right side and also began speaking again. "We were very lucky," says Stacy, Devin's mother. Devin was able to return home to Freeport and his mother took him to Rebound Therapy Center in Rockford as an outpatient. Stacy wondered how Devin's school would accommodate her son's new needs. A friend informed her about RAMP's Youth Education Advocacy Program. Stacy contacted Heather Perkins, Youth Education Advocate in RAMP's Freeport office. Heather began the process of setting up an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting at the school. Meanwhile, Stacy realized that she was going to need some extra help in caring for Devin. The meningitis caused him to have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Impulsivity, which is a lack of self-control and acting without thinking of the consequences of your actions. Stacy felt that she was giving all her time to Devin and needed to pay more attention to Tara. When the Office of Rehabilitation Services (ORS) turned them down for personal assistant services, Heather worked with Brett Blair to get Devin approved for RAMP's Brain Injury (BI) Program. Brett Blair, the Brain Injury Case Manager Assistant in RAMP's Freeport office helped Devin get approved for personal assistant services and for five months of occupational therapy, which was paid for by the BI Program. "The therapy was very beneficial to Devin in improving his attention span and self-control," said Brett.
It was time for Devin to go back to school when Heather realized that there was going to be some resistance from the school in meeting Devin's needs. |
Have
comments about or problems with our site?
Contact the webmaster.