Special needs disability parenting BLOOM

By Louise Kinross Holland Bloorview is launching a new website at the end of August, and BLOOM will be a part of it! Rather than standing alone, BLOOM will be integrated into one site with t...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/08/bloom-becomes-part-of-holland.html

By Louise Kinross It’s a bit of bling for the wheelchair, and security and control for the user. Lucy Jones—named one of the world’s brightest entrepreneurs by Forbes magazine in 20...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/click-click-dress-your-chair-with.html

By Louise Kinross The ‘fool’ in Shakespeare’s plays and the ‘trickster’ in Indigenous stories held an important role in upending the status quo. A Holland Bloorview paper  published...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/foolishness-plays-essential-role-in.html

By Louise Kinross Winnie Mak is part of a multicultural family. She is Chinese, from Hong Kong, and her husband Rafael is French and Greek. They live in London, U.K., and after their son Alex...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/diverse-dolls-help-children-appreciate.html

By Louise Kinross This summer is bittersweet for brothers Osmond (above right) and Edmond Shen (left). That’s because it’s the last one they’ll spend together in Spiral Garden. Osmon...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/for-two-brothers-spiral-garden-means.html

By Louise Kinross I have a strong image of Laurel Robinson (standing above), a speech-language pathologist at Holland Bloorview. Laurel is always racing up the path to the hospital, or back do...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/i-open-up-world-for-kids-to-be-able-to.html

An early photo of two of Sheila Jennings' children By Louise Kinross As the mom of a son who had severe asthma and a life-threatening immune condition, Sheila Jennings learned firsthand that ...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/07/when-child-has-24-7-needs-mothers-bear.html

By Louise Kinross Say the word ‘trauma’ among parents of kids with complex medical problems and disabilities, and the floodgates open. Maybe their child is medically fragile, and they run ...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/after-trauma-parents-need-space-to-fall.html

By Louise Kinross It’s a simple ritual, but one of Silvia Souto’s greatest joys. “Opening the door of the classroom at Play and Learn, and seeing the faces of the children—so happy and...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/our-nursery-programs-are-model-for.html

By Louise Kinross This is a horrifying story for all of us in the disability community who love someone who doesn't speak, and may not be able to comply with police orders in conventional way...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/off-duty-officer-kills-non-verbal-man.html

Illustration from Captive and invisible By Louise Kinross A couple of months ago I wrote down 'physical restraint and seclusion' as a story idea. But when I looked at it on the list, I kep...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/restraint-and-isolation-is-way-of-life.html

By Louise Kinross When I first saw the title of Ann Douglas 's new book, Happy Parents, Happy Kids , I was a bit skeptical. I wasn't sure if it was too simple a premise to apply to the unique...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/why-do-so-many-parents-feel-inadequate.html

By Louise Kinross Emile Benyamin is an engineer who spends his days taking care of robots. His robots extract DNA from human blood and saliva, so it can be studied in research and clinical lab...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/busy-engineer-finds-happiness-in.html

By Louise Kinross Karen Ward has worked with children with disabilities for over 30 years. I met her 22 years ago, when my son attended a Scarborough nursery school run by Easter Seals (the p...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/06/kindness-mattersthat-is-what-good-care.html

This short film about living with a dad who has cerebral palsy, uses a wheelchair, and communicates with a pointer and letterboard, is now available on YouTube. My Dad Matthew is seen through...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/friday-bonus-watch.html

Do you want to read and watch family stories about parenting children with disabilities? And hear about what it's like to work in children's rehab? Plus get links to mainstream disability news ...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/how-to-keep-in-touch.html

By Louise Kinross Kevan Chandler paid a visit to Holland Bloorview last week on a tour to promote his new book We Carry Kevan: Six friends. Three countries. No wheelchair . We’ve intervie...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/we-carry-kevan-aims-to-inspire-new.html

By Louise Kinross Logan Wong is known for his stylish bow ties. But in this photo, he's wearing a shirt with the colours of the transgender flag: blue and pink, the traditional colours for boy...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/im-trans-because-thats-who-i-am.html

By Louise Kinross Shevonne Thatham is a registered practical nurse at Holland Bloorview working with children who have complex disabilities and use ventilators to breathe. She just won the DA...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/in-nursing-everything-good-comes-from.html

By Louise Kinross A decade of activism by British mothers of children with disabilities hasn’t produced positive change in the lives of disabled people, write two researchers in a fascinatin...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/collective-advocacy-must-replace-mother.html

By Louise Kinross Joanna Miedzik is an institution at Holland Bloorview. She’s the bright smile that greets you at reception, and the kind voice when you call in with a problem. Joanna has a...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/joanna-is-face-and-voice-of-holland.html

By Louise Kinross Bobbi Champagne is a self-described nerd who loves technology and medicine. She came to Holland Bloorview as a George Brown health information management student in 2015, and...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/bobbi-finds-her-dream-job-in-health.html

By Louise Kinross Seven years ago, Payal Khazanchi and her family immigrated to Canada from Oman. At age five, Payal’s daughter Aakanksha was diagnosed with global developmental delay. Payal...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/05/payal-sees-childrens-rehab-from.html

By Louise Kinross Jess Silver is passionate about health and how we translate research into words the average person can understand. She works as a research assistant in Holland Bloorview’s...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/04/jess-translates-studies-into-words-that.html

By Louise Kinross Louise Sertsis never saw herself as an entrepreneur. But that was before she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis , and began using a wheelchair. It bothered her that to c...

http://bloom-parentingkidswithdisabilities.blogspot.com/2019/04/a-front-pack-takes-louise-where-she.html