The effect of stimulation programmes on children with Down syndrome is necessary
especially with a South African impetus. This study was an attempt to investigate the
impact of an intensive early-intervention programme, the Developmental Resource
Stimulation Programme (DRSP), on Down syndrome children younger than 42 months in
the South African context. The DRSP would assist any occupational therapist using one
stimulation programme to enable parents to assist their child to develop to their full
potential at an earlier age.
Down syndrome is a multisystem chromosomal disorder, which has been recognised to be
the single most common cause of intellectual disability occurring in approximately one in
650â700 births. Down syndrome is associated with cognitive limitations and speech as
well as motor-developmental problems. Documented studies focused on motor and
speech development in older children, with very few studies on babies younger than three
years. Adequate early-intervention programmes for babies with Down syndrome with
parent involvement do not exist in the South African context.
Contrary to the literature, this study may show the benefits of the role of the occupational
therapist in early intervention. The World Health Organization has adopted the
International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF-CY), a bio psychosocial
model that emphasises components of health and reflects participation, activities
and function. A holistic approach is essential to the developmental problems of children
with Down syndrome to create a long-term difference in their functioning in totality.
The researcher developed the Developmental Resource Stimulation Programme (DRSP)
to assist in the management of early intervention of the child with Down syndrome over a
period of 20 years. The DRSP is a unique, child-parent specific, one-on-one, integrated
developmental programme for children with Down syndrome from birth to 42 months.
Each activity of the DRSP is designed to accomplish specific activity performances in developmental domains, appropriate to the childâs ability for different age band groups
younger than 42 months. The activities comprise cognitive, motor, sensory and language
skills, as well as activities found in everyday living. The Developmental Resource
Stimulation Programme was compared to Occupational Therapy Practice Framework.
The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the DRSP on Down syndrome
children younger than 42 months in the South African context. There were four objectives
in order to achieve the aim of the study.
A quantitative approach with an experimental and descriptive study design was followed,
to confirm results and enhance the reliability and validity of the study. The measurable
attributes of the DRSP, including the participation of the parents were the focus. The
Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (3rd edition) and DRSP checklists were
used in a pre-test and post-test to measure the effect of the DRSP. There were two
groups namely the intervention group, consisting of 32 participants (children and parents)
and the control group, consisting of 28 (children and parents) over a period of six months.
Evaluation and intervention sessions were video-recorded and moderated.
Informed consent was obtained prior to the study, supported by an information document
in the language of choice, namely Afrikaans, English and Sesotho.
A self-administered questionnaire, developed by the researcher, focused on the
attainment of information regarding the overall presentation of the area, service and
treatment of the participants. The results were analysed, presented in tables and graphs,
and discussed.
The results of this study showed that a specifically designed programme with participation
of a parent has a positive impact on the development of the child with Down syndrome.
Contrary to the literature, there were positive changes in the language, fine-motor and >9-
month gross-motor development of children with Down syndrome. The DRSP with specific
goals indicated to be an attribute in the early-intervention process. The results
emphasised the holistic approach, rendered by an occupational therapist in Down
syndrome early intervention.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ufs/oai:etd.uovs.ac.za:etd-07302013-133318 |
| Date | 30 July 2013 |
| Creators | Russell, Dorothy Charmaine |
| Contributors | Prof A Venter, Dr S van Vuuren, Dr SM van Heerden |
| Publisher | University of the Free State |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en-uk |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.uovs.ac.za//theses/available/etd-07302013-133318/restricted/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University Free State or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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