world cerebral palsy day 2017 October 6 - 'We will tell the world … I am here, we are here'.

World Cerebral Palsy Day: Friday 6 October 2017

-Dr.M.A.Aleem

Neurologist

ABC Hospital

Trichy

Tamilnadu

India

World Cerebral Palsy Day is celebrated every year on 6 Oct to raise awareness as well as to ensure that persons with cerebral palsy have access to their human rights and opportunities, just like everyone else.

What is cerebral palsy?

Cerebral palsy is the most common physical disability in childhood. It affects 17 million people globally, and 350 million family members and caregivers. It is caused by an injury to the developing brain which occurs before, during or soon after birth. For most cases, the cause is unknown. Cerebral palsy is a lifelong disability that affects movement and is often accompanied by speech, swallowing, cognitive, vision and hearing impairments.

Theme for World Cerebral Palsy Day 2017

The theme for world cerebral palsy day 2017 is - 'We will tell the world … I am here, we are here'. It is time to close the gap between the everyday circumstances and the real potential of people living with cerebral palsy. Too many people receive ineffective therapies, too many individuals and their families lack access to basic information and support, too little money is being spent on research, and far too many societies keep people with cerebral palsy out of sight, out of mind and out of options.

World Cerebral Palsy Day is a movement of people with cerebral palsy and their families, and the organisations that support them, in more than 60 countries. Our vision is to ensure that children and adults with cerebral palsy (CP) have the same rights, access and opportunities as anyone else in our society. It is only together, that we can make that happen.

World Cerebral Palsy (CP) Day is Friday 6 October in 2017. More than just an awareness day, it is an opportunity to: 1. Celebrate and express pride in the lives and achievements of those with CP and the people and the organisations that support them 2. Create a powerful voice for those with CP to change their world 3. Connect organisations across the globe so they are better equipped to meet the needs of those with CP 4. Create new solutions to everyday problems 5. Act as a catalyst for social change and education campaigns that create solutions to universal challenges 6. Produce tangible, actions and outcomes that measurably improve the lives of those with CP 7. Raise awareness of CP and the issues that affect people with CP at a local, national and international level to create more inclusive societies. The project is coordinated by the World Cerebral Palsy Initiative, a group of non-profit cerebral palsy organisations with a global vision to create real change for people living with CP.

About cerebral palsy
There are 17 million people across the world living with cerebral palsy (CP). Another 350 million people are closely connected to a child or adult with CP. It is the most common physical disability in childhood. CP is a permanent disability that affects movement. Its impact can range from a weakness in one hand, to almost a complete lack of voluntary movement. It is a complex disability: 1 in 4 children with CP cannot talk, 1 in 3 cannot walk, 1 in 2 have an intellectual disability, 1 in 4 have epilepsy.* CP is a lifelong disability and there is no known cure.