AV1 robots help seriously ill children with cancer and life-limiting conditions virtually attend school from hospital beds, allowing them to join lessons and playground activities while staying connected with classmates during treatment
Katie Simmons is deeply committed to providing seriously ill children with an educational experience that is both enjoyable and intellectually stimulating. As a Children’s Rights and Education Practitioner at Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice in South Wales, she is a trailblazer.
The hospice is the first in the UK to initiate a programme that allows Katie to offer education to critically ill children, whether they are in hospital, at home or in the hospice itself.
While other hospices may have a visiting teacher to assist residents with their homework, Katie’s dedicated role enables her to deliver an educational programme to a child, regardless of their location. The children referred to Katie range from three to 20 years old, with varying abilities, and she also assists children preparing for their GCSE exams.
Katie utilises Lifelites technology in her teaching approach, stating it’s crucial for helping children learn and connect. On Monday, we launched our campaign to raise essential funds for Lifelites, aiming to ‘Unwrap the Magic of Christmas‘ for thousands of children by giving them access to life-changing technology.
Lifelites is the sole charity dedicated to providing assistive and sensory technology for young people with life-limiting conditions. It partners with 65 children’s hospices and palliative care services across the UK and Ireland, reports the Mirror.
Out of the 100,000 children in the UK with life-limiting conditions, 15,000 currently have access to Lifelites tech, but a staggering 85,000 are still without it.
Among the technology the charity supplies are AV1 Robots, Eyegaze, which allows users to operate a device using only their eyes, the Magic Carpet, which displays interactive images onto a flat surface, and Soundbeam, which converts movement into music.
Former primary school teacher Katie, 48, proposed the concept when she joined Tŷ Hafan, recognising there was an urgent requirement for such a service.
She explained: “I campaigned for education for these young people that can’t get to school because they are too unwell to access education and we evidenced a gap for the need for my role. The Children’s Commissioner for Wales came on a visit and she loved it. We then worked to make it a reality.”
She emphasised the broader benefits of education beyond traditional classroom learning: “I’m a passionate believer that education brings so much more to young people than just learning sitting in a class and learning. For children with a life-shortening condition it can be very lonely, they may not speak to anyone during the day.”
Katie highlighted the crucial importance of maintaining educational access: “Ensuring they still get their education is so important, so to have me to turn to is vital for their development.”
Many youngsters referred to the service have complicated conditions, with numerous being non-verbal, and Katie employs Lifelites technology to enhance her educational sessions, including the Eyegaze, Tilt and Touch Table, Cosmo Switches and iPads. Katie also commended the Lifelite’s Learning Hub, which offers straightforward tutorial videos to assist staff in using the technology.
In fact, Katie is a Lifelites Champion, working closely with the charity regarding the tech: “She said: I’m passionate about children’s rights and helping young people feel empowered and gain access to the education they are entitled to.”
“The Lifelites technology enables me to deliver my role as an Educational Practitioner at the hospice or out in the community. It’s fully accessible to every type of child no matter their condition or ability. The Cosmo Switches are brilliant when delivering my educational sessions, there are a number of interactive games which enable the child to be educated based on shapes or numbers or even times tables that I use the Tilt Table for.
“Often with education they might feel they can’t achieve their full potential but with Lifelites technology it’s fully accessible. You will see the parents and the siblings all gathered round playing an interactive educational game, where that young person is really feeling a sense of being part of something.
“Life as a young person suffering from a life-shortening condition can sometimes be very tough so getting an education and being stimulated is vital. Often children die when we at least expect it, a child died last week that was totally unexpected. I love working with children and I do get close to them so they feel they can trust me, it is hard but we do get supported to deal with our emotions.
“The young people I get to work with are totally inspiring, they have no idea how amazing they are, that’s why I’m constantly complimenting them, I’m in awe of all of them. Using the Lifelites technology that enables them to feel like they can go and do it and they can achieve their goals.”
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.