Prémio da Mac Keith Press – “Best Paper” entregue à APPC
No passado dia 03 de julho, a psicóloga Diana Brandão representou a APPC na 26 reunião anual da European Academy of Childhood Disability (EACD), em Viena. O evento contou com 518 participantes de 49 nações, 5 “Keynote lectures”, 24 sessões paralelas, 14 workshops, 35 comunicações e 120 posters.
A psicóloga apresentou a comunicação “Challenge and Participation in youth with Cerebral Palsy”, na qual resumiu os principais resultados do projeto “Desafio e Paticipação”, que tinha como principal objectivo colocar adolescentes com paralisia cerebral a interagir no palco internacional com os restantes agentes da reabilitação – os médicos e terapeutas, demais técnicos e profissionais da área e pais.
Esta comunicação mereceu o prémio de“Best Paper” da Mac Keith Press, editora de revistas como a “Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology”.
Abstract
Introduction:
Recognizing that now is the time to prepare for the future, the aim is to increase the participation of youth with cerebral palsy and involve them in decision making in different areas and at different levels. This project aimed to place 7 Portuguese youth with cerebral palsy, aged between 12 and 14 years, discussing their experiences related with sports, fitness, and health activities with their peers from Newcastle.TOPO
Participants and methods:
Over one year, 20 discussion sessions, twice a month, deepening the themes and reinforcing the English language skills and the participation in a workshop dedicated to young people with disabilities, with their peers in Newcastle. Self-determination, Life satisfaction and Hope were assessed before the workshop, using the Portuguese versions of AIR Self-Determination Scale, Student's Life Satisfaction Scale, and Children's Hope Scale. After the meeting, semistructured interviews were conducted with parents to understand the impact of the project on youth.TOPO
Results:
We found moderate values of Self-determination (101.28 ± 13.26), Life Satisfaction (29,71 ± 2,05) and Hope (29,00 ± 7,00). Although we did not notice a direct impact on young people's behavior, interviews with parents suggested the positive impact of this kind of approach, regarding their socialization, personal acceptance and also the reinforcement of their self-determination.TOPO
Conclusion:
We suggest that sharing of experiences among peers can boost young people's selfdetermination and life satisfaction.
