HOW THIS BOOK IS ORGANIZED
This book is divided into 3 parts: 1. “Working with the Child and Family,” 2. “Working
with the Community,” and 3. “Working in the Shop.”
The disabilities that villagers usually consider most important are discussed in early
chapters, beginning with Chapter 7. In many countries, more than half of the disabled
children have either polio or cerebral palsy. For this reason, we start with them. Other
disabilities are arranged partly in order of their relative importance, and partly to place near to
each other those disabilities that are similar, related, or easily confused.
Notice that in the chart on p. A8, certain ‘secondary disabilities’ occur very often.
(‘Secondary disabilities’ are problems that result after the main disability.) For example,
contractures (joints that no longer straighten) can develop with many disabilities. In many
villages, there will be more children who have contractures than who have any single primary
disability. For this reason we include some of the important secondary problems in separate
chapters.
Common disabilities that are often ‘secondary’ to other disabilities include:
Contractures, Chapter 8
Dislocated Hips (either a primary or secondary disability), Chapter 18
Spinal Curve (either primary or secondary), Chapter 20
Pressure Sores (often occurs with spinal cord injury, spina bifida, or leprosy), Chapter 24
Urine and Bowel Management (with spinal cord injury and spina bifida), Chapter 25
Behavior Disturbances, Chapter 40
Other disabilities that are often the primary problem but commonly occur with other
disability—usually with cerebral palsy—include seizures (Chapter 29), blindness (Chapter 30),
and deafness and speech problems (Chapter 31).
IMPORTANT: Some important information in this book applies to many
disabilities. In order not to make the book longer than it is now, we have
not repeated all of this information in each chapter on specific disabilities.
Instead we have put it in separate chapters.
This means that to meet the needs of a specific child, you will often have
to look in several different chapters. We have tried to make this as easy
for you as possible (see “How To Use This Book,” inside the back cover).
FOR MANY DISABILITIES IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU
READ INFORMATION FROM SEVERAL CHAPTERS.
ABOUT THIS BOOK
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