On 22 February 2022, idsMED Indonesia in collaboration with AIA and RSIA Bunda Ciputat, organised an online health talk on "Tips for Dealing with Children with Special Needs". dr. Yulia Hernawati, Sp.A, a representative of RSIA Bunda Ciputat, was invited to speak on the topic.
The talk, which was organised specifically for parents of children with disabilities, was aimed to discuss the concerns about child development and how parents should handle children with special needs. A total 62 participants attended the event.
dr. Yulia Hernawati, Sp.A covered five main points in her talk:
1. Basic needs of children which include:
• Physical and biological care such as hygiene, complete immunization, and exclusive breastfeeding.
• Affection and emotion give a sense of security and comfort by making the children feel motivated and exemplified.
• Stimulation, such as increasing the complexity of children’s brain cells by stimulating the balance of the right and left brain. Parents play an important role in helping to stimulate their children’s brain cells.
2. Four aspects of a child’s development, which are categorized into:
• Gross motor skills such as climbing, jumping, standing and maintaining balance.
• Fine motor skills such as playing puzzles, holding pencils, and playing with beads.
• Ability to speak and communicate, such as writing, singing, and reading books.
• Cognition and socialization, which involve sympathising, playing with peers, and engaging in group games.
3. Early detection of developmental disorders, three of which can be done with a developmental pre-screening questionnaire, hearing tests, vision tests, and others.
4. Definition of children with special needs and their kinds. Here, dr. Yulia mentioned that children with special needs are children who experience extraordinary physical, mental-intellectual, social, and emotional limitations and differences, which have significant effects on their growth and development compared to other children of the same age. The three examples she gave are dyslexia, autism, and visual impairment.
5. Tips for handling children. dr. Yulia reminded parents to be more open-minded and carry out supervision from an early age. She also reiterated that parents should: provide motivation, adapt to children, increase emotional closeness with their children, teach children to discover and explore their skills, instill independence from an early age, learn habits based on their children’s needs, follow expert advice, choose the right school and collaborate with them, and follow through with available therapies.
In conclusion, dr. Yulia stated that every child is special and parents should be proud of them and guide them always. She also reminded parents that they should not hesitate to seek professional help if their child is showing signs of developmental disorder. In such cases, parents were strongly advised to follow the guidelines for handling children with special needs consistently and continuously.
