When parents leave the unit 'they're incredibly capable'

By Louise Kinross Dr. Andrea Hoffman is a developmental pediatrician who works with children with complex medical problems on our inpatient units and in our feeding and neuromotor clinics. She was hired in 2013 after finishing her developmental fellowship here. She’s also a black belt in karate who first came to Holland Bloorview as a volunteer. BLOOM: What led you into this field? Andrea Hoffman: I started volunteering at Holland Bloorview...

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Filming autistic swim team changed mom

By Louise KinrossSwim Team is a feature documentary about the sense of community and joy three youth with autism experience swimming on a competitive team called the Jersey Hammerheads. It’s also the story of their parents and their extraordinary efforts to support children who have been written off by professionals and shut out by other families. The film was part of the ReelAbilities Film Festival in Toronto this month. BLOOM interviewed director...

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How Western ideas about success fail disabled youth

By Louise Kinross Much has been written about how using normal development as a rehab benchmark sets disabled kids up to fail and devalues different ways of being in the world. Now a new study looks at how Western ideas that equate adulthood with independence, work and education marginalize young adults with developmental disabilities—and their parents.“When transition policies and practices for disabled youth are shaped on...

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'When I'm swimming, I feel normal'

By Louise Kinross Swim Team is a gorgeous documentary about a competitive New Jersey swim team made up largely of Latino and Asian youth with autism. It focuses on three of the team's stars as they prepare for competition. "I'm not like other teenagers," says one of these boys. "I'm autistic. When I'm swimming, I feel normal." We also get to know the boys' parents, who talk about their experiences raising them and their frustration with a lack of school preparation and support as they enter adulthood. The film was shown at Holland Bloorview...

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For this scientist, a healthy weight isn't a number

By Louise Kinross Amy McPherson is a scientist at Holland Bloorview who is co-lead of our Centre for Leadership in Participation and Inclusion. Amy’s research looks at health promotion and obesity in children with disabilities. Eight years ago she packed up her life in Britain and moved to Toronto to become a scientist in our Bloorview Research Institute. “I’d been teaching psychology and sociology to medical and nursing students, and I wanted...

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Kudos to Johnson's Baby for its new ad

By Louise Kinross Johnson's Baby released a new ad that features a child with Down syndrome for Mother's Day.  It begins with a close-up of a baby's beautiful blue eye, with the line: JOHNSON'S BABY CELEBRATE LOVE AND DIVERSITY. Then it moves to other baby parts, the toes, chubby fingers stroke a leg, then touch the tummy, hands clasp, and we see the soft skin of the baby's back. Finally, the child's face is revealed, and he smiles....

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Students run concussion rehab program for youth

By Louise Kinross There’s little science to show how to best help youth with concussions who continue to be bothered by headaches, fatigue and dizziness.A new research study at Holland Bloorview is testing the impact of a six-week program of education, low-intensity exercise and relaxation on 200 youth aged 10 to 18 who have concussions, most of them sport-related. “We want to know if this active rehab approach works for kids with concussions,...

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What I consider when writing about my son

By Kari Wagner-PeckMy book Not Always Happy: An Unusual Parenting Journey comes out on May 16. Yes—I’m one of those people who finds their life experience so interesting I wrote a book about it. But first I wrote for several years on my blog about my husband, about me and mostly about our son Thorin who lives with Down syndrome.I started the blog because I didn’t relate to much of what I was reading about Down syndrome. I didn’t fit...

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Immerse yourself in disability art

The ReelAbilities Film Festival is holding its free Family Film and Art Day at Holland Bloorview on Saturday May 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Five films are being screened as part of ReelAbilities, which is presented by the Miles Nadal JCC. This is a great opportunity to see films about the lives, stories and art of people with disabilities and Deaf people. There are also inclusive art activities for the whole family at Holland Bloorview and...

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Tales of kindness and contempt

By Louise KinrossHow do you think you’d be treated if you were out and about in the city and blind?Recently I read media stories about two blind men and their commutes by subway and train in major cities.And they couldn't be more different.Amit Patel (photo below), a former doctor who lives in London, describes travelers who hit his guide dog Kika with umbrellas or bags, barge into Amit and complain that the pair is holding them up. He says station...

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Tim Rose and Magnet make the job search easier

By Louise Kinross Holland Bloorview has partnered with Magnet, an online employment platform, to bring together job-seekers with disabilities and employers. “Job seekers register and employers build a profile and post a job, and the system uses advanced matching technology to match that job to candidates based on experience, education and qualifications,” says Tim Rose, diversity project lead at Magnet. “If LinkedIn and match.com had a baby,...

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Asha 'reshaped the way I look at the world'

By Louise Kinross I heard this amazing interview with Ron Buliung, a professor in transportation geography at the University of Toronto Mississauga. He’s collecting data on a research project that looks at how children who use wheelchairs and walkers—and their parents—view accessibility at home and on the child’s trip to school each day. The project grew out of Ron's family's experience trying to make their front yard accessible for daughter...

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