Local centre helps kids and their parents
Five Counties Children's Centre celebrates 30 years in our community
A hidden gem that’s a key part of our medical system for children is celebrating 30 years of operation in Campbellford and 50 years since it came into being, in part due to a push from the Rotary Club of Campbellford.
The gem is Five Counties Children’s Centre, which has its head office in Peterborough and a local office at the rear of the Campbellford Memorial Multicare Lodge. The centre provides a wide range of services, including physiotherapy, speech therapy, and vision care, to children from birth to 19.
“We may be one of the best kept secrets in the community,” says Bill Eekhof, the group’s communications co-ordinator.
That’s a secret it’s trying to share. On May 27 from 4 to 6 p.m. the centre will hold a family fun fest that is part birthday celebration and part open house to introduce the facility and its services to a wider audience.
One key point is that parents don’t need a doctors’ referral to have their child evaluated or receive services. If you have questions about your child’s development you can call or fill out a form on the Five Counties’ website to start the process of getting help.
On the website, one local couple discusses the help their daughter Nova has received.
“Nova was born with Down syndrome and started coming to Five Counties Children’s Centre when she was two months old,” say her parents Katie and Chris. “Of the many emotions we felt upon Nova’s diagnosis, feeling scared was at the top of the list. There was fear of the unknown, especially what lay ahead for Nova and us.
“Since coming to the centre, Nova has benefited from physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. Since starting daycare, she also has a resource consultant from Five Counties to make sure her needs are met.”
Her parents say having the centre near home has been a blessing. “We travel to Peterborough and Kingston for specialist appointments, so having the Campbellford location so close to home is wonderful.”
The website includes a wide range of videos and articles that provide background information for parents and help them understand developmental milestones.
All the services are free; Five Counties is funded by the province.
“The Campbellford Rotary Club was among nine clubs across the region in the early 1970s which championed the creation of Five Counties in Peterborough – and led to the opening of our first centre there in 1975,” Eekhof says.
“Five Counties served families across the region, but over the years, gradually added sites in other communities to provide care closer to home for families,” he adds. “This included opening a new location in Campbellford in 1995. It was actually our first site in Northumberland County, predating the opening of our Cobourg site by four years.”
It now has locations in Peterborough, Campbellford, Cobourg, Minden and Lindsay. It serves Peterborough, Northumberland County, City of Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton County. You may notice that doesn’t add up to five counties. The organization used to serve clients in Hastings County but in the early 2000s that ended, however, the group didn’t want to change its name.
Eekhof says that last year the organization served just over 6,100 kids, with about one-quarter, 1,500 in Northumberland County.
Like most healthcare services, Five Counties does have a waiting list, depending on the care needed. Last year the list had about 2,300 children, Eekhof says, with strong demand for speech and occupational therapy.
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