Early intervention brings hope to families and Fortemix helps financially

When uncertainty is born

During the pregnancy, little Kuba's parents had no signs that something might be wrong with their son. The shock was all the greater when they learned that their baby had a congenital vision defect. Fear, despair, uncertainty – how will we manage the future? Among the many pieces of information that suddenly hit them was a mention of early intervention. They had never heard of it, even though it has been helping families in the Moravian-Silesian Region for 30 years.
The first meeting with the counsellor was a turning point for the parents. "Above all, early intervention gave us hope. Not that it promised us a miracle, but it showed us that we are not alone. That there are ways to help our son, and that we will manage," says Kuba's mother.

How does it work?

Early intervention helps families with children who have a disability or delayed development up to the age of 7. The counsellor does not wait in an office – she comes directly to the family's home, where together they look for the best way to support both the child and the parents. Parents learn which toys and aids to use to support the child's development, how to adapt the home environment and how to communicate with the child. They can also use social counselling and share their concerns with the counsellor. Support is also directed at the healthy siblings of the child with a disability, because they too often need appropriate help and attention. By law, the service is free for families, and an exact diagnosis is not required.
Helping children get the best possible start in life

Support in difficult times makes the difference between despair and hope. "To all families who find themselves in a similar situation, I would wish that it does not bring them to their knees as a family. Because I don't think there is any reason for that. That everything has a solution, and in the end even colours :-) And that a child mainly needs a functioning home. I wish for parents to pull together, and not to withdraw from people because of a child with a disability. I recommend contacting early intervention because it brings enormous support and peace to families. It provides information that families won't get from doctors or teachers. For us specifically it is a TOP service, but it is hard to describe until you experience it first-hand," says one of the mothers who used early intervention.

Fortemix has been supporting the Ostrava branch of the Společnost pro ranou péči (Society for Early Intervention) for several years. At the end of last year, it supported it with CZK 148,000. The organisation focuses on supporting children with visual or combined disabilities or with impaired development of visual perception, and travels to around a hundred families throughout the Moravian-Silesian Region.

If you would like to know more about early intervention or recommend it to someone who might need it, take a look at www.ranapece.cz/ostrava.