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Biomedical subjects

R McConkey

Publications and source records attributed to R McConkey.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1998

A training strategy for personnel working in developing countries.

Throughout the world a common consensus has emerged that community based services offer the best prospect of meeting the needs of people with disabilities and their families. However the shift away from specialist centres and institutions has not been accompanied as yet by a reappraisal of the training required by personnel working in these new forms of services. This paper describes the training strategy which has been developed by the Community Based Rehabilitation Programme in Guyana, South America. This has three components. First, the identification of training needs of families and support workers, second, the production of video-based training packages on specific topics and third, the utilisation of available personnel to act as local tutors. This strategy has resulted in over 7000 CBR volunteers, health workers, teachers in mainstream schools, families and villagers having access to information and skills which otherwise they would be denied. An immediate priority in developing countries is to nurture the human resources required to develop and sustain this sort of training strategy and proposals for doing this are outlined.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The performance of children with a moderate mental handicap on simple counting tasks.

This study examines both oral and object counting, and the ability to read numerals in a group of 51 children with a moderate degree of mental handicap. The findings indicate deficiencies in basic counting competencies across a wide spread of ability. There is also evidence for a distinction between oral and object counting on a cognitive skills basis. The findings are discussed within a remediation context.

Achievement↗
PubMed1987

Home-based learning programmes for mentally handicapped people in rural areas of Zimbabwe.

This paper describes the operation of a community-based rehabilitation programme specifically for mentally handicapped children and young adults living with their families in rural areas of Zimbabwe. Details are given of the clients enrolled in the programme and the teaching goals used with them. Evaluation data on the programme's effectiveness is also presented. Three features are identified as being central to the programme's success, 1) partnership with existing agencies in the area, 2) the training and monitoring that is provided by specialist staff in mental handicap, and 3) the provision of resource materials -- forms, cards, videos -- which are tailored to the cultural, linguistic and literacy needs of the recipients. The efficient use of specialist staff is highlighted as are future areas for research and development.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1984

Preparing nonretarded young persons to meet mentally retarded adults.

A representative sample of 420, 15- and 16-year-old students in Dublin city participated in a short educational program designed to introduce them to mentally retarded adults. The main feature was a carefully, structured contact session with retarded peers held in the students' school. Various control procedures ascertained that the program had been effective at increasing the students' confidence at meeting retarded people. Moreover, the majority of students voluntarily chose to visit a local mental retardation center, and a proportion of them maintained regular contacts. We argued that students need to be given explicit guidance on how to interact with retarded peers.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Play activities of mentally handicapped children at home and mothers' perception of play.

Reviewers have frequently commented on the meagre literature that is available on the play of mentally handicapped children, especially play at home. This study involved 67 families with a moderately or severely handicapped child aged mainly between 2 and 12 years, living in Dublin city. Details were obtained on who the children played with; the activities they engaged in and aspects of the home environment conducive to play. Furthermore mothers' perception of play are reported along with their reactions to playing with their child. It was found that the children's play was immotive and lacking in variety and that it invariably occurred within the family. Mothers viewed play as very important and saw it as an enjoyable and beneficial experience for themselves as well as the child. It is argued that parents should be given opportunities to learn how best they could nurture their child's development through play.

Attitude↗
PubMed1983

A national survey of young people's perceptions of mental handicap.

Over 1300, 15 and 16-year-old students throughout Ireland, completed a range of questionnaires which covered their past contact with mentally handicapped adults, their perceptions of them, their views on integration within society and their knowledge about the causes of this disability. It was found that only one quarter of the students had ever interacted with a mentally handicapped adult and nearly half of them had never been in their company. There were marked differences between these subgroups in their perceptions of, and attitudes to, mentally handicapped people. Equally striking were the differences between male and female students, although the effects of social background, city versus country and socio-economic status, were less pronounced. The implications for school-based, educational programmes on disability are discussed and areas for further research are highlighted.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Changing young people's perceptions of mentally handicapped adults.

A representative sample of 420, 15- and 16-year old students, participated in a short educational programme about mental handicap; the main feature of which was a well-structured contact session with a group of mentally handicapped adults. This lasted 40 min and took place in the students' school. Various control procedures ascertained that the programme was effective at increasing their confidence in meeting mentally handicapped people and in their knowledge of the causes of mental handicap. Moreover the majority of students voluntarily visited a local mental handicap centre and a proportion maintained regular contact. These findings were replicated in a second study involving a further 368 students but this time the programme was presented by teachers and/or personnel from a local mental handicap service. The salient features of the contact sessions are discussed and directions for future research noted, particularly explicit guidance for adolescents on interacting with atypical peers.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

An index of social competence for use in determining the service needs of mentally handicapped adults.

An index of Social Competence, covering 15 ability areas was developed for use with mentally handicapped adults. Statistical analyses of data obtained with a sample of 376 adults, living in the community suggested that there were three main factors underlying social competence. Eight subgroupings of the sample could then be derived according to the individuals, scores on the three factors and validatory evidence is presented for these groupings in terms of predictable relationships with certain independent variables such as the expressed need for residential care. Furthermore ratings made by staff and parents were reasonably similar. The index should prove particularly useful in surveys of service requirements especially in the social and residential areas.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

The recreational pursuits of mentally handicapped adults.

The parents or care-givers of over 200 mentally handicapped adults, living at home in the city of Dublin, were interviewed as to how their son or daughter spent their leisure time. The picture that emerged was of a sheltered existence within the community. Mostly their activities were passive and solitary in nature - watching T. V.; listening to radio or records. Nearly half of the sample did not take part in any activity outside of the family; only one third took part in the community activity and only one fifth were reported to have non-handicapped friends. It would appear that parents are willing for this to continue, in that they had few suggestions for new activities; they felt their son or daughter was not interested and most thought that recreational activities should be supervised. It is argued that services should teach leisure skills in the same systematic and structured way as for other areas of the curriculum. This should reassure parents and help to ensure that mentally handicapped people not only live in the community but that they can participate in community activities.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

Parental speech to young Down's syndrome children: an intervention study.

Parents with Down's syndrome children who were at the one-two word stage of expressive language development were given a language objective to work towards with their child, but no instructions on how to attain this goal. The parents spontaneously altered their language strategies in their attempts. Some parents were more successful and differed in their strategies, using more target words in shorter "statement" utterances. Parents who used a questioning or imitating strategy were less successful. The less successful parents were then shown how to alter their language strategies more appropriately to produce a greater improvement in their child's use of the target words.

Child↗