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From: | |
Reply To: | St. John's University Cerebral Palsy List |
Date: | Sat, 30 Jan 1999 02:10:03 EST |
Content-Type: | text/plain |
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I have 2 children, 3& 5 & am in the middle of a divorce. I have worked
professionally to support the rights of parents with disabilities. My husband
& I both have CP. He also has a severe hearing impairment, ADHD & has been
diagnosed with several cognitive impairments including memory, information
encoding & personalities disorders. He basically functions like a person with
a closed-head injury or TBI in that his behaviors & judgment are very
inconsistent. He is also on high doses of meds which make it very difficult to
wake him up. I wish to emphasize that he has resisted all rehabilitation
efforts at work and at home.
But now he is seeking overnight visits with both children who are both
seriously asthmatic. We are seeking a GAL (child advocate). However, if that
fails, I am looking for ways to deal with emergency situations which would
work independent of him to keep the children safe. For example, fire. He says
he has a smoke detector with a flashing light. However, this may not wake him
up & he is very slow to respond. He has never woken up independently to care
for the children.
1). I've heard there are smoke alarms that can notify the fire department
directly. He lives in an apartment so a security system may not be an option.
If it exists, where can I get it?
2). He cannot hear the apt. buildings fire alarm & this has been demonstrated.
This is a large apt. complex. Any ideas?
3). He cannot hear the children wheeze or cough even when he's awake. Its
worst @ night. Are there baby cry alarms that can pick up wheezing?
4). Are there ways to notify 911 personnel of these issues so they can respond
appropriately to a medical emergency?
Addressing these issues & others would be most helpful. The hearing on GAL/
overnights is on 2/2.
Again, the solutions cannot rely on him. He totally denies there are concerns
& even when modifications or accommodations are put into place, he doesn't use
them.
Thank you for any assistance
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