Ebony
A Johnson Publication
The Mystery of Malcolm X
Christmas in July
Crusade in Mississippi
President Johnson and Robert Taylor Jr.
Government Steps Up Equal Job Opportunity
September 1964 50c
Page 2The Causes of Retardation;
Though all the causes are not known, experts suspect there are more than 100 diseases and mishaps that can result in mental retardation. These range all the way from genetic irregularities to unusual occurrences during pregnancy (German measles, glandular disorders etc.), at birth (prolonged labor, hemorrhages, pelvic pressure and other unusual stresses that can injure the unborn child's brain), and after birth (certain childhood diseases, glandular imbalance, blows to the head, lack of certain blood chemicals, the swallowing of lead in the form of paint flakes etc.).
Whatever the cause, there is no known "cure" for the mentally retarded. Despite medical advances in other areas, no one has yet discovered a way to replace brain cells that have been injured, destroyed, or have failed to develop. Thus today great emphasis is placed not only on research into causes, but on prevention of mental retardation and on how those afflicted can be helped to live as normal lives as possible.
Much is already known about prevention. For example, the significant number of retardation cases resulting from lead poisoning could greatly be minimized simply by the enactment and enforcement of laws that would force landlords--especially those with old buildings in slum areas--to remove all heavily-laded paint from ceiling and walls. Special diets can prevent that form of retardation caused by lack of certain blood chemicals, and surgery can relive pressures on the brain. Caesarian births are often used to lessen the hazard of prolonged labor, while blood transfusions can be given infants with Rh-factor incompatibility. Two other ways to cut down on the problem are the avoidance of unnecessary X-rays during pregnancy and the quick treatment of childhood diseases that produce high fevers and inflame the brain.
As it relates to what can be done for the retarded, it should be remembered that mentally retarded children and adults resemble normal persons more than they differ from them. All persons, especially children, whether they are retarded or normal, have the same need
In case conference, Dr. Margaret J. Giannini, director of mental retardation clinic and New York's Flower and Fifth Avenue Hospital, briefs staff on new patient.
In job orientation class, Rehabilitation Counselor Ben Dobkin explains payroll deductions to Workshop trainees. Such counseling is a vital part of training for retardates who are able to leave closely-supervised, sheltered workshops for "outside" jobs.
Medical examination by Dr. Giannini starts new patient on program of evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation that has made Flower-Fifth a world-famous clinic.
Workshop Star newspaper (being put together by trainees, above) report trainees' achievements, complaints, humor, etc., and serves as a valuable rehabilitation aid.
Testing for extent of retardation, clinic's chief psychologist, Dr. Harold Michal-Smith, watches as patient places cut-outs in form board. Test is for perceptual-motor integration ability, determines whether child sees things as they are.
Paper art objects are cut out by patient as art and play therapist Emery I. Gordon tests to see if she is able to reproduce, by cutting or drawing, things seen everyday.
In test for visual recognition of object and ability to express in words what she sees, patient is shown picture of bird by speech and hearing therapist Evelyn Pollack.
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