funding physiotherapy for Kasia's babyCare

Funding physiotherapy for baby Antoni

January 12, 2021By

Physiotherapy for baby after diagnosis of neurological cyst

The Trustees of the Axis Foundation were delighted to help Kasia Ulanowska who works at Axis. They agreed to fund 18 months physiotherapy for her baby Antoni  who was diagnosed with a neurological cyst, donating £5474 for the treatment.

Kasia says: “Knowing that we can help him catch up but not being able to afford was just heart breaking. We had not even dreamed about half what we have been donated, we will be forever grateful.”

More about Kasia and Antoni

Kasia Ulanowska gave birth to her long-awaited son Antoni in week 35 of an extremely difficult pregnancy, complicated by multiple medical emergencies. Antoni was born tiny, weighing only 1.7kg (3.7lbs). He was rushed to intensive care and spent a month in hospital before he could come home.

Kasia was concerned about Antoni’s physical development. And a diagnosis of a neurological cyst, a brain abnormality which causes hypertonia (increased muscle tone) put him at a very high risk of abnormal development and developmental delay.

Ruth Bayliss, Highly Specialist Paediatric Physiotherapist and Clinical Director of The Children’s Physio LTD, recommended early intervention and regular physiotherapy treatment saying:

“His current physical presentation can be significantly improved with the help of physiotherapy.”

Long waiting times in the NHS forced Kasia to consider private physiotherapy. So, she asked the Axis Foundation for help to fund the treatment.

The Trustees of the Axis Foundation were delighted to help Kasia who works at Axis. They agreed to fund 18 months physiotherapy treatment donating £5474.

Antoni’s physiotherapist reports: “Antoni has done incredibly well over the last year and continues to respond to physiotherapy well and meet his developmental targets.”

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Patient using an FES machine in therapyDisability

Berkshire MS Therapy Centre

December 12, 2019By

Donation of Functional Electrical Stimulation machine helps MS sufferers

The Berkshire MS Therapy Centre has supported people with Multiple Sclerosis for over 30 years. Our donation means that the centre can buy a four-channel Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) machine, and the accompanying electrodes. The machine stimulates four muscles simultaneously, alleviating symptoms such as impaired limb movement and muscle weakness.

I feel like I did before I had MS – Candice, patient

Being able to exercise properly is vital for MS sufferers because exercise rebuilds muscle strength. It also benefits fatigue and balance, decreasing the risk of falls.

Candice, who uses the machine said: “It is amazing how this small piece of equipment can make me grin like a love-struck teenager! I just can’t explain enough how it feels to suddenly have so much improvement in my movements. I feel like I did before I had MS. A simple thank you just doesn’t seem enough to convey what a difference this has made.”

The Berkshire Centre has used FES therapy for years but usually this therapy is a treatment for foot drop. The centre now uses a four-channel machine to aid people with wider movement issues, helping even more MS sufferers. FES applies electrical charges to muscles that have been paralysed or weakened because of brain or spinal cord damage. Leading physiotherapist Henriette said the machine “is a great addition because we can offer more support for people with MS”.

She adds: “On behalf of everyone at the Berkshire MS Therapy Centre thank for your help and generosity.”

More about MS

MS is an unpredictable condition that affects hundreds of thousands of people across the UK. It can cause a range of debilitating symptoms; the centre uses treatments to make life with MS easier. To find out more, visit https://www.bmstc.org/.

Watch Candice with an FES machine in action below.

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Samson centre patients using electronic standing frames with nursesDisability

The Samson Centre for MS

December 9, 2019By

Funding the purchase of an electronic standing frame for MS sufferers

The Samson Centre provides practical and emotional help for people living with Multiple Sclerosis in Surrey and nearby areas. Our donation of £8000 will buy a much-needed electronic standing frame as well as a mini arm support.

This is such a special piece of equipment – Jackie Payne, Centre Manager

Electronic standing frames improve the quality of life for people with MS. Exercise is difficult because of limited balance, which means certain muscles are rarely used. This can weaken the body and cause a fear of falling. The frames help wheelchair bound people to stand on their own feet and exercise without that fear. They stimulate muscles that need it, while a mini arm support is used for people who need arm strengthening.

The frames play a vital role at the Samson Centre, because they help people to exercise and stay active. A new electronic frame lasts for 10 years and wheelchair users work with them on a daily basis.

Jackie Payne, Centre Manager said: “We are so grateful to the Axis Foundation for their generous donation for the purchase of a new standing frame. This is such a special piece of equipment as it allows wheelchair users to benefit from standing while they are at the Samson Centre for MS.”

More About The Samson Centre for MS

The Samson Centre for MS is a charity based in Guildford, Surrey. They provide physiotherapy sessions, exercise classes, and oxygen treatments, with access to adaptive rowing. Also, they have 3 fitness instructors, 2 rehabilitation assistants and a volunteer coach for the adaptive rowing, working on a part-time basis.

To find out more, visit www.samsoncentre.org.uk

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Children enjoy physiotherapy swimming lesson at Waterwings swimming club.Donations

Waterwings

April 12, 2018By

Swimming classes for children with disability

Waterwings is a fully accessible swimming club that provides occupational therapy for children with physical and learning disabilities. It also offers hydrotherapy.

The Axis Foundation’s donation of £3,600 will pay for the use of the school pool, a lifeguard cover and a hydrotherapy trained physiotherapist for a year.

“This funding is essential for the running of Waterwings. Without it we would not be able to provide vital, life enhancing therapy and play for these wonderful children. This type of facility is not available anywhere else locally and we thank Axis Foundation so much for helping us to ensure it continues” – Tracy Smith, Fundraiser

More About Waterwings

Waterwings is the only swimming club in St Leonards on Sea that provides fully accessible swimming lessons, occupational therapy and hydrotherapy. Sessions take place at St Mary’s School, Bexhill where the school pool is specifically designed for children with special needs. It has a hoist, changing areas for children with physical disabilities and accessible car parking for carers and parents.

Waterwings’ children have a range of disabilities: Cerebral Palsy, Spina Bifida, heart problems, developmental delay, Downs Syndrome, Muscular Dystrophy, learning disabilities or autism. Whilst some children can walk with support and others are wheelchair dependent, they all have difficulty in getting into the water and need assistance or hoisting. Local facilities are in the main unsuitable and, importantly, unsafe, because of overcrowding, lack of hoists and the pools’ temperature.

It is well documented that children with physical disabilities benefit from regular targeted occupational therapy. Hydrotherapy (no longer available through the NHS) helps with bone and muscle development. It also provides relief from muscle spasm and teaches patterns of movement that are vital for posture, sitting, standing and walking.

 

 

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Group of adults at Paul's Cancer Support CentreCare

Paul’s Cancer Support Centre

February 8, 2018By

Training volunteers to help cancer patients

Volunteers at Paul’s Cancer Support Centre provide emotional, physical and psychological support for 500 cancer patients a year. The Centre also has a Home Visiting Service for 100 patients who are too frail to make the journey to the premises in south west London.

The Axis Foundation has made two donations to Paul’s Cancer Support Centre. Our first donation (£3,300 in 2017) recruited and trained four massage therapists, three reflexologists and one befriender; our second (£2,500 in 2018) trained nine new Home Visiting Service volunteers.

“On behalf of the Trustees, staff, volunteers and clients at Paul’s Cancer Support Centre, I would like to thank you and your Fellow Trustees for all your support. We are truly grateful” – Scheherazade Ameer, Fundraising Manager

“Funding into our volunteers’ training is vital for us to provide support for cancer patients. We are so appreciative of the grant we received from the Axis Foundation. We cannot deliver our services without volunteers” – Marisca Ribeiro, Services Manager

More About Training

Scheherazade Ameer, Fundraising Manager, explained: “All our Home Visiting Service volunteers have to complete our high-quality, specially-designed 32-hour course. A nationally recognised expert in cancer and bereavement counselling has assessed our course as ‘a model of excellence’. We then match our Volunteers to Home Visiting Service clients once we receive their DBS approval.”

A Trainee Home Visitor told us: “Helping others is a humbling experience which also provides a great amount of satisfaction. I hope to gain a better understanding of the challenges those with cancer face so I can provide more effective and supportive massage treatments to them and contribute to improving their predicament, even if for a short while.”

A Home Visiting Service client said: “During a time when I was housebound, barely able to move about and seeking psychological and emotional assistance, this was the only local organisation who was able to provide face-to-face counselling in my own home; I am so grateful for that, and for how quickly it was organised.”

 

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Disabled child using a gait trainer to learn how to walk at the Freddie Farmer FoundationDisability

Freddie Farmer Foundation

September 2, 2017By

Specialist gait trainer provides physiotherapy for disabled children

We’ve donated £7,500 to the Freddie Farmer Foundation, supporting their programme of providing physiotherapy for disabled children. Our contribution helped the charity to purchase a LokoHelp electromechanical gait trainer.

“The LokoHelp electromechanical gait trainer works with children in an upright position to enable them to walk in the correct walking pattern. “It builds up the leg muscles required for walking and encourages a more effective application of therapy in all phases of gait training.

“Ninety percent of our children already benefit from the LokoHelp electromechanical gait trainer which we have been able to purchase with your donation.

“It really makes a difference and has been invaluable to us. The £7,500 donation also completes our £55,000 campaign total. We are really, really happy – it has been hard but we have hit our target now. So a huge thank you from us to you” – Karen Smith, Charity Officer

More About Freddie Farmer Foundation

The children who attend the Freddie Farmer Foundation predominantly suffer from Cerebral Palsy like Freddie Farmer. The centre provides physiotherapy for disabled children aged between 3 and 16 years old. Although most children are from the local area in Bromley, some travel all the way from Scotland, Yorkshire and Malta to receive treatment.

See our video – find out how the Freddie Farmer spent our donation!

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Child having a horse riding lesson at Vauxhall City farm.Community

Vauxhall City Farm

November 6, 2016By

Horse riding therapy at urban city farm helps disabled and disadvantaged children

Vauxhall City Farm started out in 1977 with local people working voluntarily to transform derelict land into an oasis of country life in the heart of London. Their Horse Riding Therapy Centre has been helping the Vauxhall community since opening in 2002.

The Axis Foundation has been supporting Vauxhall City Farm for many years. We have donated a total of £25,000  to the charity through five separate donations since our first donation in 2006. In addition, Axis people actively volunteered at the farm as it was close to our then Head Quarters.

 “Vauxhall City Farm Riding Therapy Centre has had a very successful year since receipt of payment of the grant from the Axis Foundation. We aim to continue to provide the current number of lessons to disabled and disadvantaged children and sustain the much-valued work for the benefit of local young people. We cannot thank you enough” –  Riding Centre Manager, Linda Hinds 

More About Vauxhall City Farm

Vauxhall City Farm’s horse riding project targets disabled and disadvantaged children in inner-city areas who would not normally have the opportunity to horse ride. In one year the centre provided 1,283 riding lessons to young people and 1,878 riding for the disabled lessons. Their feedback has shown that the horse riding therapy project offers a substantial amount of beneficial factors including increased confidence, relationship building and achieving individual goals, Horse riding and can also act as a form of physiotherapy.

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