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ALS Society of Canada creates an award-winning series of informational booklets
Toronto, ON — April 2, 2008: When a parent is diagnosed with ALS everything changes not only for him or her, but also for the family. It can be hard for a parent to discuss this fatal disease with their children in a manner that they can understand. In turn, those children may experience thoughts and feelings that they are unable to comprehend and deal with. Jane McCarthy, director of services and education at the ALS Society of Canada, has created an award-winning series of informational booklets as part of the als411 program.
“Living with a parent with ALS, a child can feel there is nowhere to turn because the other parent is too busy being the caregiver, and s/he may be too uncomfortable to talk to their friends at school because they perceive that they will not understand. This leaves the child alone to cope with feelings s/he may not know how to manage. These information booklets will help provide children and their parents with tools to help process the news of the ALS diagnosis and cope with the changes along the way,” explains McCarthy
The goal of the als411 program is to target children and teens whose parents are battling ALS, to help answer any questions or concerns they may have about their loved one’s condition as well as to help both them and their parents learn to cope with the feelings associated with this devastating illness. The informational series is comprised of three booklets targeting parents, teens and children. Each one is tailored to address their individual concerns to provide them with coping mechanisms and suggestions on how to approach their upcoming challenges.
The booklet for teens entitled, “When Your Parent Has ALS,” was developed with the input of eight teenagers who have gone through the painful experience of losing a parent to ALS and shares their experiences and feelings in hopes that other teens can take comfort in knowing that they are not alone, and the feelings they may be having are normal. All the booklets are available in print as well as an online version available on the als411 web site (http://www.als.ca/als411/), in both English and French. Stayed tuned for the new and improved als411 web site coming this summer, which is being re-launched as two sites, one for children and one for teens. Both sites will be bilingual as well as incorporate more interactive features.
Two of the booklets received Mercury Excellence awards. The booklet for teens received the silver award in the category of Special Purposes Brochures, and the booklet for children entitled, “When Someone Special Has ALS,” was awarded bronze for Brochure Design. The Mercury Excellence Awards are sponsored by MerComm’s award program, which recognizes outstanding achievements in the field of communications in an international arena.
ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is the most common type of neuromuscular disease that attacks and paralyzes the muscles, ultimately resulting in death. ALS does not discriminate and can affect men and women of any ethnic origin at any age. Approximately 2,500 - 3,000 Canadians are battling this disease. Eighty per cent of those affected will die within two to five years of diagnosis.
Founded in 1977, the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Society of Canada is the only national voluntary organization dedicated to the fight against ALS and support for those with ALS. The mission of the ALS Society of Canada is to fund research towards a cure for ALS and support provincial Societies to provide quality care for those affected by ALS.