Bone Abstracts

Objective: Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) is most commonly caused by a defect in the genes which produce type 1 collagen. Features of OI include easy fracturing, short stature, hypermobility, weakness and fatigue. Our experience is that including a child with OI within a school or nursery environment can cause anxiety for both carers and staff. Questions often arise regarding how to promote participation whilst maintaining a child’s safety. Keeping up with the curriculum can be challenging for some children. The Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy team at a specialist paediatric OI centre offer a school and nursery outreach service. Topics frequently addressed include appropriate inclusion in physical education, risk and environmental assessments, recommending suitable equipment and strategies, as well as providing education to staff about OI. The outreach service was evaluated to investigate its effectiveness and identify areas of improvement.

Method: A questionnaire was sent out to schools and nurseries which had been visited by the OI therapy team. Questionnaires were sent out electronically and responses anonymised.

Results: To date 11 questionnaires have been sent and 9 returned, some of which were incomplete. 100% of those who responded reported information on safety considerations and environmental and risk assessments to have been most beneficial. 50% reported equipment advice and information on OI was beneficial. 25% found information on participation and fracture management beneficial. 75% of respondents felt another outreach visit would be helpful. Following the visit, all reported an increase in confidence in their understanding of OI. Furthermore all reported an increase in their ability to modify the environment appropriately to ensure participation.

Conclusions: Based on these results, those surveyed found the outreach service valuable, citing the information on OI, modifying the environment/activity and managing risk as being the most beneficial. We have been able to identify areas of need and also areas of development such as follow up visits. Our evaluation is on-going with the aim of collating more robust data to evidence the provision. We will use these results to offer schools and nurseries the support they require and modify our existing service accordingly.

Disclosure: The authors declared no competing interests.