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An inspirational woman with cerebral palsy is opening a therapy centre which uses horse power to help other people with neurological disorders improve their mobility.
Dr Dorothee Debuse has spastic diplegia – cerebral palsy which affects her legs – and first experienced the healing power of hippotherapy, a specialist physiotherapy intervention using horses, when she was eight years old.
The 38-year-old grew up in Germany and qualified as a Chartered Physiotherapist in 1994 after studying at Northumbria University, where she now works as a part time lecturer. But pursuing her love of horses and helping others through therapeutic riding remained paramount and she is now preparing to open the unique service to the public after receiving funding from One North East.
Over £8,300 has been awarded to Dorothee from the Northumberland Uplands LEADER programme which is made available through the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) - jointly funded by Defra and the European Union - and managed by One North East.
Based at Titlington, near Alnwick, three jobs will initially be created – a specialist physiotherapist post, a horse handler and an assistant post with more jobs to follow in the future.
Dorothee said: “Because I have cerebral palsy I know what it feels like to be a patient so I’m in an ideal position. When I was eight years old my movement improved vastly after starting therapeutic riding - after four weeks I was able to ride a bike. My condition drove me to become a physiotherapist and after working in Germany where hippotherapy is renowned I feel very passionate about helping people with neurological problems in this region.
“Riding a horse has proved to be incredibly empowering, giving people a great deal of hope with raised self esteem and a feeling of achievement both physically and psychologically. It’s beautiful to witness.”
Dorothee gained a doctorate in 2006 with her research study on “The effects of hippotherapy on people with cerebral palsy” and completed hippotherapy practice education in Germany in 2008 – world leaders in the practice.
She added: “When I worked in Germany I saw some examples of really good practice and my ultimate aim is to establish a Centre of Excellence in Hippotherapy in the UK. There is no service like ours that I know of in the whole of the UK, there are only a handful of trained physiotherapists in this field, some of which have retired.
“People have told me that after receiving hippotherapy they ‘feel like they are walking on a cloud’ and these are people with real neurological problems. Other people have said that after hippotherapy ‘it feels like their knees aren’t tied together any more’ – a few people have used those exact words. I get goose bumps when I know we can help people achieve such a change in their ability to move, and ultimately, in their quality of life.”
Supported by her husband Stuart, Dorothee has been working with her horse to prepare him for his work, and following the vital funds from LEADER to purchase special equipment for the centre she is working towards being in a position to offer the service by November.
Tom Burston, Local Action Group Co-ordinator said: “The Northumberland Uplands Local Action Group is delighted to support Dorothee in the setting up of Horse Power for Ability. We are trying to encourage the development of new ideas in Northumberland and Dorothee’s plans are really exciting. This is going to help create jobs and opportunities that don’t exist in Northumberland at present.”
Adrian Sherwood, RDPE Manager at One North East added: “Dorothee’s story is truly inspiring and it is great that she has combined her personal experience and love of horses to help others.
“Funding RDPE projects through the LEADER approach provides community and business support in specific rural areas and this project is a glowing example of the good work that is being carried out by Northumberland Uplands, who is taking an active role in the economic development of the area, benefiting the region as a whole.”
People interested in using the service can find out more by visiting www.horsepowerforability.com. As with most physiotherapy services, people can either self-refer or be referred by their GP or consultant. At present it is a private service but Dorothee hopes that when the benefits of hippotherapy become well-known in this country, it will eventually be a service offered through the NHS.
RDPE is part of Solutions for Business, the Government’s package of publicly funded support products offering help to companies to start, grow and succeed. Solutions for Business makes it easier for companies to get the advice and assistance that they need.
For further information on the full package of support, visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/northeast.or call Tel: 0845 600 9006.
For more information on RDPE in North East England, visit: www.rdpenortheast.co.uk
For more information on RDPE, visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/rurdev/index_en.htm
http://www.defra.gov.uk/rural/rdpe/index.htm
Ends.
For more information, contact Alison Laggan (press office) on 0191 229 6613 or email alison.laggan@onenortheast.co.uk
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