Customer Stories

At Normandy Park Education Center, Laura Krueger, Physical Therapist works with many students with severe disabilities. “We work on all areas of development from social skills and language, to motor skills or cognitive skills, and we do that within the natural routines of the day,” Laura explains. One of the many success stories is Hamza who has a Traumatic Brain Injury.  Hamza is greatly benefiting from the physical therapy that he receives at school, both physically and socially. “We see a definite increase in communication, his ‘proud talk’ we call it!  He is very proud that he is standing on a level with his peers,” Lance Reed, Hamza’s Home Care Nurse, adds.

Being Part of the Class
Normandy Education Center focuses on keeping kids with disabilities in the classroom with their peers and incorporating therapy into that routine.  “For Hamza, who is also working on his motor skills, standing and getting in a lot of different positions, we want to do that within his natural routine. So we incorporated the stander into all of the normal routines of the preschool classroom.” Laura tells us how standing helps Hamza be a part of his class, “Using the Bantam stander, Hamza can participate in the same activities as the other kids.  We have SMART™ boards in our classroom so when the teacher is telling the story, Hamza can be standing so he can visually attend to the story, see the picture and listen better.  Also being in the gym, anywhere in the school, he can be in his stander and be with his peers the whole day.”

Ready to Learn & Stand
Many physical therapists, teachers, and parents have noticed that when their kids stand, they are more alert. Physical Therapist, Laura Krueger discusses how the EasyStand Bantam helps Hamza prepare to learn. “As we’ve used the stander more and more with Hamza, we found that he is much more alert, and ready for learning. He is able to focus better, his level of awareness and alertness has increased.”   

For kids with physical disabilities, school becomes not only a place to learn, but a place to grow both mentally and physically. Registered Nurse, Lance Reed highlights some of the physical benefits of standing. “The health benefits are really astounding, it helps his GI (gastro-intestinal) system continue to work, plus it makes him aware of his whole body and really helps emphasize his muscle tone. A really important feature of the Bantam for Hamza in particular, is that all the harnesses stay out of the way of his sensitive stomach area where his GI tube is.”

Changing Positions is Key
For Hamza, the supine option on the Bantam stander is a must. Laura explains, “Being able to get him into the stander in a supine position is wonderful!  It’s much easier and safer to position him and he is more comfortable because he can stand up slowly.” Laura explains why a stander that offers infinite positioning, like the Bantam, is perfect for Hamza, “He is working on his trunk control. At first we were not sure if the upright stander was going to work, but it worked better than any other stander that we’ve tried because we can get just the right angle to give Hamza good head support.” Changing positions is also important for Hamza’s medical conditions. Laura continues, “He prefers standing in a semi-supine standing position to sitting because of some of his health concerns. The great thing about the Bantam is that we can go down into a seated position quickly to take care of Hamza’s medical needs if he has a seizure or has coughing, then easily return to standing.”

Activities While Standing
“Lots of great activities can be done in the stander, such as painting, or any activity that the other kids are doing. Where normally he wouldn’t be able to as easily,” Lance explains.  Hamza also uses some assistive technology while standing in the Bantam. Lance adds, “The switches that we have been working on with him all end up on the tray at his disposal. It has opened up a lot of options and allowed him to use the switches on his own. Those kinds of activities are essential to maintaining his quality of life!”  Laura elaborates, “Hamza is working on communication with different assistive communication devices, simple technology like a Step-by-Step™ to activate toys, or stories or books. We love that the Bantam tray inclines so visually we are able to set it at the best angle for him to see all the books and games.”  

Achieving the “Right Fit”
Every child is different and has different needs, often what worked for another child did not work well for Hamza. “I really like the EasyStand Bantam’s adjustability, because every child we work with has different needs. For Hamza, we are really working on getting better head control and getting his head in a position that he can maintain.” Laura talks about what adjustments are unique for Hamza, “We put the tray up a little higher so that he gets more support into his shoulders by bearing weight in his forearms and giving him more stability and head control. For other kids we set the tray lower, offering a better position for manipulating toys and tools, but for Hamza this works the best!”

Increasing Standing Time
At Normandy Education Center the goal is to get kids standing about 30 minutes at a time, for about two hours a day total, including home and school.  Laura and Lance are gradually working on increasing Hamza’s tolerance with short increments of standing time followed by rest time. Laura explains this process, “It is so much easier when we can give him 10-15 minutes of standing upright, then lower him into a seated or supine position for a 5 minute break, and finally go back up and stand again for another 10-15 minutes.” Lance also notes how it greatly reduces the stress on Hamza’s body, “Transferring out of the stander and back into it several times a day can be stressful on the body. It’s so much easier just being able to switch positions like this and give his muscles, and more importantly his joints, a little rest.”

Proud Talk
Standing in school continues to bring out the best in Hamza each day.  Lance expresses some final thoughts on the Bantam, “Overall this standing frame, it’s features, and how it was built, are so important for Hamza, from his toes to his head.  From cognition, to muscles and joints, to GI and respiratory, it is really a blessing for somebody like him!” Laura talks about how rewarding it can be to see a student like Hamza come out of his shell. “As soon as he feels the stander he starts to extend his legs, he knows what’s going to happen and he is ready to go!  We can tell by Hamza’s facial expressions that he loves being up, his eyes are wide open. It’s fun because Hamza is communicating more with us while he is in his stander. That is what we want to hear, his ‘Proud Talk’!”

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Child with a Traumatic Brain Injury Stands with Proud Talk!