Our Story

Est. Since 1st September 2020

There is an increasing number of children being diagnosed with Neurodevelopmental disorders. Neurodevelopmental disorders are disorders in the functioning of the brain that affect a child’s sensory and motor abilities, behaviour, memory or ability to learn. Examples of such conditions are intellectual impairment, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning impairments, autism, visual impairment alone or associated with other conditions, Downs syndrome amongst others.

Neurologic insults may also present with physical as well as functional abnormalities, such as cerebral palsy. Neurologic insults may result from genetic conditions, but most commonly poor obstetric care in environment. Other causes include: congenital infections at conception and pregnancy (rubella-Nigeria has not yet implemented the vaccination programme), toxins and congenital structural anomalies and lastly prematurity. The Neurohabilitation Centre for Children, Calabar, through Professor Roseline Duke, started its work in disability by performing a community based research in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, in which children with cerebral palsy in all three senatorial districts in Cross River state above the age of 4 were identified in their communities and treated for various eye conditions. (Duke R, et al. Clinical features and aetiology of cerebral palsy in children from Cross River State, Nigeria, doi:10.1136/archdischild-2019-317932; Duke R. et al.

Pattern of comorbidities in school-aged children with cerebral palsy in Cross River (submitted). Duke R, Nwachukwu K, Torty C, Okorie U, Kim j M, Burton K, Gilbert C, Bowman R. Visual impairment and perceptual visual disorders in children with cerebral palsy in Nigeria. BJ; A community data base was created. Following this was the creation of the physical facility The Neurohabilitation Centre for Children, Calabar, to address the challenges and barriers to adequate health care services and education encountered by families and children with the Neurologic disorders.

The Neurohabilitation Centre for Children, Calabar is a complex medical facility ( a combination of medical, habilitation and education services in a continuum of care)which aims to aid recovery in children from any nervous system injury, and to minimize and/or compensate for any functional alterations resulting from it. The benefits of habilitation is to promote a child’s skills to the highest level of independence possible for him /her after the damage to the brain or spinal cord. It also encourages him/her to rebuild self-esteem and a positive mood. Thus, the child can adapt to the situation and become empowered for a successful education and life and community integration.

The Neurohabilitation Centre for Childrens’ approach to care, is an inclusive holistic, participatory, resolving, patient centred, community focused, inclusive, spiritual and lifelong approach.