Tina Ambani’s Mission to Make Every Indian Child Independent Through Department for Children with Developmental Disorders

It was in February 2016, that Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital launched a department for children with developmental disorders. It is a comprehensive rehab facility with advanced technology, specialized multidisciplinary team and a dedicated area for state-of-the-art services.

Tina Ambani, with her futuristic aim of catering to the young minds of the country that is the children, took it as a personal mission to enable them to take on their dreams.  Today Maharashtra stands to be the second most populated state in India, and it forms to be home to 114.2 million people or in simpler terms more than 9% of India’s overall population. As luck may have it, the state also forms to be the one of the five largest states with people with disabilities across India. The population of children between 0-6 years old is approximately 1.33 crore. Out of these (as per the incidence rate of 10%), 13 lakh children are likely to have one or more forms of disabilities. Ergo, realising the urgency, given the alarming data, Tina Ambani launched this department.

Early Intervention through Rehabilitation Leads to Prevention

Much of scientific evidence is available that validates the inference that disabilities can be averted by way of early intervention and the chances of a child developing a severe disability can reduced through rehabilitation. The aim of paediatric rehabilitation is to curtail the physiological and psychological effects of developmental disorders like cerebral palsy, autism and ADHD and to boost the overall mobility and abilities to perform everyday activities.

The Amenities: No Stones Left Unturned

Neurodevelopmental therapy is central to the treatment for all the aforesaid conditions. It has to be all-encompassing since each affected child is unique and needs multiple professionals to be involved. Taking cue from this need, the department is equipped with a paediatric rehab facility with the most up-to-the-minute technology, specialized multidisciplinary team and a dedicated area for the state-of-the-art services. As a matter of fact, the department has not left a single stone unturned for catering to the cause of children with developmental disorders. 

It has a 3D Instrumented Gait Analysis Lab to evaluate gait problems in children, a multidisciplinary team of rehabilitation medicine specialists, paediatric neurologists, child psychiatrists, orthopaedic surgeons, child psychologists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech and language pathologists, special educator, orthotists, nurses, and nutritionists will provide integrated services.

The Early Signs

As per Dr. Pradnya Gadgil, a paediatric neurologist at the facility, the first symptoms are visible when the child is three months old. Classic instances are when the child doesn’t smile back, or does not make eye contact. That’s when the parents should be seeing a doctor. Further, in case the child is unable to walk without assistance or form complete words by the age of 18 months, the parents need to pay special heed. The parents should not ward off attention complains at school as carelessness on the child’s part.

Tina Ambani’s Mission

Tina working vehemently towards the cause of the affected children feels that kids are building blocks of the future. She believes that every child is an imperative thread in the nation’s fabric and their potential must be recognized and realized. And for the kids who are stricken by developmental disorders an enabling environment becomes even more important. She sees it as unfortunate that in India kids with special needs continue to be marginalized and excluded and at times, even invisible.

She seeks to engage and work with families to bring every child into life’s mainstream. She wants to do her part in creating a more integrated, inclusive, mature society where hopeand help enable every dream to take wing.”