NEWS: CRS Community Development Project in Cottolengo Filipino
11:49 PM
by Jordan Uy
3SLP
A fundamental point for any CRS student is their first time
to interact with people who require their field of expertise. It is here when
they come to terms with reality about the challenges, responsibilities, duties
and skills that they must acquire in order to be effective and efficient in
their line of work. Though, knowing the importance of an experience in theory
does not necessarily prepare one for the experience itself.
Before we – nine student SLPs, five student PTs and one
student OT – embarked on the fairly long trip to Cottolengo, we were given an
orientation by our proctor, Sir Jonathan Gerona, on the basics of interacting
with the patients. This covered the manner of how we were to approach and
handle them, how to properly massage specific portions of their body, how to
feed them properly, and so forth. To say the least, it was a bit intimidating
being taught all these, especially since I was the youngest in terms of year level
who attended the excursion. Moreover,
because it implied that failing to follow the correct procedures might actually
harm or hurt the person that we were supposed to be helping. Suffice to say, we
all wanted to perform our duties properly.
When we finally arrived, we were greeted warmly. A number of
the patients alongside some of the teachers and staff were already in front of
the building waiting for us, ready to walk us in. Met with smiles, I and my
colleagues felt an air of relief and excitement as we strode through the halls.
The place itself was quaint. Hanging on the walls were pictures that showed the
multiple excursions the patients had been treated to. Arts and crafts materials,
paint, crayons and coloring books were in all the classrooms. None of the buildings stood more than one
level high and murals adorned each one.
We were introduced to the patients, most of whom were very
young children while a small number were already much older than us. The
facility itself was well equipped for the challenges that their patients have,
either mentally or physically, while the staff was competent, inviting, and
even happy to receive advice and techniques in dealing with their patients. The
patients were undeterred by their disabilities and seemed happy to receive
guests, showing to us whatever for them was new and worthwhile.
When it came for us to facilitate, we were escorted into the
SPED classroom and introduced to more children who were brought by their parents
for evaluation. The number of patients added to about twenty or so in total,
meaning that some of us had to handle two patients at a time. Even though
facilitating the patients was arguably the most important portion of our trip,
I didn’t feel that any of us were intimidated by the prospect. We proceeded to assess
and observe them, taking note of their various difficulties, speech problems and
other complaints.
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| UST SLP students assess and evaluate the children of Cottolengo Filipino |
At first, I imagined it to be a lot more challenging. In actual experience, evaluating the kids was
more akin to play since we merely had to convince them to do what we required
them to perform. After some time, we all started to enjoy our time with the
kids, which was evident from the smiles we wore on our faces.
What was challenging on our part was trying to keep up with
them when they started to misbehave. When lunch time rolled in, we followed the
patients to the cafeteria where we continued to observe them as they ate and
how they were fed by their caretakers.
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| Sir Jonathan Gerona feeds one of the patients while UST SLP students observe |
Things started to slow down afterwards as
most of the patients were already leaving, finished for the day.
Having accomplished what we had set out to do, we gave our
thanks and said our goodbyes to the people we met. We also took photographs to
document, commemorate and remember the event. We had another round of happy
goodbyes and took the lengthy bus ride home, this time feeling more fulfilled
than before.
As a whole, the activity has shown me the impact and importance
of CRS to society. The activity emphasized the need to reach out to the
community and establish relations and linkages with them. More importantly, it also teaches CRS
students the valuable tools and techniques that they will need in the future.
Rather than putting emphasis on particular disabilities, the activity aimed to
focus on the multiple facets of the patient’s life, taking a holistic
approach. I agree with the goals of this
activity and hope for more programs and rewarding
experiences such as this one.
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| UST SLP student volunteers with Sir Jonathan Gerona pose in front of Cottolengo Filipino |
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