Eastern Graphic, April 11, 2007 LORIE O’HALLORAN
The Eastern School District expects Mary Lou and Glenn Robertson, of Cardigan, to provide transportation for their daughter to get to school because she is in a wheelchair.
Ms Robertson said she spoke with Katherine MacKinnon, transportation coordinator for the Eastern School District, and was told the district has buses equipped for wheelchairs but none were available.
The Robertson’s daughter, 10- year-old Kailley, was recently transported to school in the Charlottetown-based Pat and the Elephant van but the family doesn’t know who arranged it.
Katherine MacKinnon, transportation coordinator for the Eastern School District said the Robertsons would not have to pay that bill but she said she couldn’t discuss their case further without reviewing their file.
Ms Robertson requested the service but was told the Eastern School District could not afford it. Ms Robertson said the school district suggested they find a friend to drive Kailley and they would pay this person $30 per week, but they wanted to do back ground and criminal checks on the person.
‘There aren’t too many people who would go through all that for $30 per week,” Ms Robertson said.
Kailley’s need for a wheelchair is temporary. She was issued the chair following a recent surgery.
Ms Robertson said when Kailley was eight months old doctors discovered she had dislocated hips and surgery was done to repair the problem. The child got an infection and was put in a body cast for two- and-a-half years.
Kailley will undergo another surgery in June to repair her hip and leg problem.
Her left leg is 20 per cent smaller than her right so doctors broke the growth plate in her right leg to allow her left one time to catch up.
When Kailley is 17 she must have a hip replacement because she has no socket for her hip bones. When she walks, her hip bones hit her pelvic bone.
What Kailley was born with is very rare, only one in a million children suffer from this, Ms Robertson said.
“No matter how many surgeries she goes through she will always have a disability.”
Ms Robertson said the Eastern School District needs to put some thing in place to solve this problem, not just for Kailley but for everyone.
Ms MacKinnon, said the district has three wheelchair accessible buses in Charlottetown but there are none in this area.
“That is something we will have to look at,” Ms MacKinnon said.
The Robertsons don’t feel it is their responsibility to provide transportation for Kailley to go to school and with the mountain of cuts made to the disability pro grams, they wonder how many more times they will have to deal with issues such as this.
“We heard about the cuts but didn’t realize how it would affect us, but now we know.”
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