INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZING COMMITTEE OFFICERS and INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE MEMBERS

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The objectives of the conference are:

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I greet the Organizers of this year's 3rd Joint International Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Academy.

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My warmest greetings to the officers and members of the Organizing Committee of the 3rd Joint international Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference as you hold your convention, in cooperation with the Northern Marianas College Disability Support Services, Biophilia Rehabilitation Academy of Japan and Medical Center Manila, on September 16-18, 2004 at The Pearl Manila Hotel.

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Let me express my warm welcome and greetings to everyone in this 3rd Joint International Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference. It is our honor and privilege to host this prestigious annual scientific event. I consider this as a rare opportunity for us here in the Philippines to listen to the experts from here and abroad as they present current and new information on disability management and rehabilitation.

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Four and a half years ago, I met Mr. Shigeo Takizawa, Vice-President of Biophilia rehabilitation Academy of Japan, during the International Conference on Disability at California State University, Northridge On that same year, [ was invited to attend their rehabilitation research meeting in Tokyo, Japan. In 2001, I proposed to Mr. Takizawa to have the 1st CNMI International Conference on Assistive Technology and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference in Saipan which I coordinated and it became a reality in November 2002. Thereafter I recommended that 0ur next conference be held in the Philippines, however, it was held in Canada.

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On behalf of Japan Biophilia Rehabilitation Academy, I am pleased to announce to my Philippine friends and foreign delegates that European countries and Japan try to cope with aging society. We seek every possible means on how we should provide better life for the aging society. In order to establish a well-aging society and make up a community rehabilitation network, we started a standing committee in 1993, as a society for the socio-medical rehabilitation of the 21st century. And we were able to have a first academic meeting of the Biophilia Rehabilitation Society in 1998.

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I am honored to address at the 3rd Joint International Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference. Those who are engaged in rehabilitation services in Japan often argue that rehabilitation is not only about functional training today. What is 'holistic rehabilitation of disabled people'? Is it to live by one's self in an inconvenient environment using all the remaining body functions effectively? There are many cases in which disabled people gradually become dysfunctional and must stay in bed for the rest of the life. In this case, do we still call this situation a 'holistic rehabilitation'? In Japan, there are 730,600 disabled elderly people who are considered bedridden.

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Hafa Adai and greetings from the US Common wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands! It is a great pleasure and honor that our Institution, through the initiative of our Northern Marianas College Disability Support Services of our Counseling Programs and Services, has conceptualized and coordinated the 3'd Joint International Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference that will be held in Manila. Philippines, on September 18, 2004. This will be the first ever-international conference on disability and rehabilitation that the Northern Marianas College (NMC) has coordinated.

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On behalf of the Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information and Exchange (CIRRIE), I send warm greetings and the wish that your conference be a successful one, as it has been in past years.

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Dear Participants of the 3rd Annual Disability and Biophilia Conference, I celebrate the vision you demonstrate in your participation in this special event. Of late I have been studying deeply the degree to which technologies allow human beings to develop new "functional organs," that is, tool-mediated virtual extensions of capacities that help people uncover, develop, and magnify talents, as well as to develop new internal cognitive structures that result in more elegant, expert, and efficient outward abilities EVEN when those mediating tools are removed(!) That is a view from cognitive psychology and activity theory.

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Since I took up the challenge of leading DPA for the last four years, many things happened within the Asia-Pacific Region that we have missed out on and we still have a long way to go. I also learned more about our Regional Organization and in particular, finding out about the struggles, commitments and hardships that our self-help groups have to go through in order to achieve our millennium goals and objectives. This is particularly so with the extension of the Decade for Persons with Disability from 2003 to 2012.

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I remember our good communication about your First International Conference on Assistive Technology and Biophilia Rehabilitation Conference in November 2002. The conference souvenir program was very good to review. I was impressed with your presenters as well as the presenters during this 3rd Joint Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation Academy Conference.

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Rehabilitation is indeed an area for many as a disabled person that need to look into. As a disabled person myself, I am always looking at ways to reduce my dependency. With such sharing session of knowledge, technological advances and the many know-how in these areas, the disabled communities in the region would definitely have much to gain from this conference organized by your committee.

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It is my great pleasure to be representing Australia as a participant at the International Disability Conference during 16-18 September 2004, in Manila, The Philippines.

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Congratulations!

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SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME

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My dedication to help the disabled was borne out of my very own personal experience when I was working in a government office in the City of Manila. Being a wheelchair-borne disabled myself, I have always felt discriminated and wasn't given an equal opportunity in my job. That didn't discourage me but rather boosted my determination to aim high. Now, I have proven not only to my countrymen but to the world that disability is not an obstacle to the pursuit and achievement of one's goal. I have practically spanned the globe giving talks and speeches on disability and the value of equal opportunity and the goal of truly being independent and productive. My dream and mission is to enhance these values particularly in countries like the Philippines where care, attention and opportunities for the disabled have yet to be given a true meaning. I dream of the time where my fellow disabled countrymen will enjoy an equal opportunity to be independent and productive. Thank you.

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With the advent of better technology, better health care follows thereby increasing years to life. This however makes the population older and more prone to develop arthritis and /or osteoporosis that can be debilitating.

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Today's galloping advances in medical knowledge and technology have swollen the ranks of elderly persons, sparking off a rise in the incidence of chronic diseases and disabilities to which they are more vulnerable than any other age groups. Providing rehabilitation services for seniors involves an enormous range and complexity of challenges. Since age is one of the key factors in planning rehabilitation, it becomes necessary to define the term "elderly" to ensure that a proper perspective supports the program. Rehabilitation must consider not only the chronological age but also the anatomic and physiologic variables in the aging process.

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Orthotics have been in great use since ancient times. Orthotics were made to protect, correct or support a particular area of the body or limb. Research and development were accelerated after World War II. Orthotics at that time used more of aluminum or steel and leather but today, different types of plastics are used. Other types of orthosis have both steel and plastics. Prefabricated orthosis are now available making it affordable and easier to procure. Newer designs has recently been researched and found to be effective in preventing further orthopedic complications. Orthotic components are now also available to further improve efficiency. Lately, CAD CAMs has been in use for manufacturing and research. CAD CAMs has contributed to improvements in design concepts. Research in the field of orthotics has lately been about efficiency, and improvement of the quality of life.

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Orthotics have been in great use since ancient times. Orthotics were made to protect, correct or support a particular area of the body or limb. Research and development were accelerated after World War II. Orthotics at that time used more of aluminum or steel and leather but today, different types of plastics are used.

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Assistive technology has dramatically changed the lives of individuals with disabilities, that is, from care reliance to independence. The presenter will discuss the definition of assistive technology and the different categories of assistive technology devices that can be used by individuals with disabilities for communication, control of environment, mobility, seating, and daily living. Hands-on demonstration and information on some assistive technology devices will be provided.

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Discriminatory practices towards women with disabilities are prevalent in many countries. The dissertation examines major issues relating to the formulation and implementation of special education policy within the context of developing countries. It focuses especially on the experiences of women with disabilities in Pakistan. It is stressed that the variety of disabilities experienced by women is as great as the variety of abilities present in the non-disabled population.

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Technology has changed the way we communicate. This presentation will be a combination PowerPoint and actual computer presentation that will highlight the use of a software-writing program called, “Clicker." We will show how to set up and use the software with a trackball mouse and Microsoft Word.

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Stroke is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the Philippines. It is believed that stroke rehabilitation is one of the more important treatment armamentarium in helping patients return back to be productive members of the society. In the 1940's, exercises were based in the observation of the pattern of recovery after stroke. The emphasis was inhibition and facilitation of reflexes to aid in motor recovery.

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Spasticity is a diagnostic hallmark of an upper motor neuron disorder, and therapeutically, it represents one of the most important impairments for those who care for patients with central nervous system disease. It spans a variety of diagnoses, from cerebrovascular disease, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, cerebral palsy, and the like. It may affect patients of different age groups and impacts on a variety of functions such as hygiene, feeding, dressing, balance, ambulance, and other activities of daily living.

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Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a muscuskeletal disorder of the upper extremity characterized by inflammation and swelling in the tendons that runs through the tunnel in the anterior wrist joint. The resulting compression of the median nerve in the narrow tunnel causes numbness and/ or pain of the first three fingers. The syndrome categorized by the World Health Organization as a work related problem and is caused by high frequency movements and lack of rest period. It is one of the most frequent causes of repetitive strain injury. When CTS afflicts a young productive age group the health, social and economic costs may be staggering especially for a developing country like the Philippines.

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In addition to modern sports, we have added contemporary sports to the physical education (PE) curriculum at this school. We have considered the following 3 points for a course of study. 1) Include not only regular sports but also add new sports and sports for disabled people into the curriculum. 2) A caring concern for others and environments is nourished through one's spirit and body through experiencing physical activities and stretching. 3) Include sports that focus on nature in order to encourage the students to rethink the relationship between human and nature, to realize that humans are part of the nature and enrich the “sense of wonder" by learning about themselves.

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The current condition of functional training at welfare facilities, where they take care of numerous bedridden people, is considered insufficient. Due to this situation, the disuse syndrome has developed and body functions of bedridden elderly people are rapidly deteriorating. The Takizawa Program is practiced as an exercise therapy regimen for infirm elderly people at the Geriatric Health Services Facility (GHSF) and geriatrics hospitals; however, the effectiveness of the Takizawa Program has not yet been proved by randomized controlled trial (RCT). Therefore, this report will prove the effectiveness of the program and emphasize the importance of exercise therapy for bedridden elderly people.

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This research explains the structure of MELAD DEVICE, which is convenient for in-home use and also helps patients, who need nursing care, to be independent through motivative exercise. The sled, which is attached to the leg of the device, enables the user to cross doorsills and bumps without difficulty when moving. A management system is provided with the device. This system sends the results of the motivative exercise to management center. This contributes to the user's health management and the independence of both the caregiver and the disabled person. We strongly believe that disabled people can improve their body functions and reacquire walking due to the development of rehabilitation generated by this device. We also hope that this will contribute to the achievement of our social and economic goals, which are to reduce financial strain, to look after elderly people who are physically weak, and to ease the anxiety of Japanese citizens.

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The population of elderly people over the age of 65 in Japan reached 19% in 2003 and it is estimated to be 22% by 2013. Due to the arrival of such aging society, it is an urgent problem for Japan to guarantee the physical and mental health and independent life for the elderly people as well as to establish the methods how to deal with this problem. The percentage of the elderly population in the Philippines in 1990 was only 3.6% and even in 2010 it is estimated to reach 4.9%. The arrival of the aging society in the Philippines still seems to be out in the future. Therefore, we would like to introduce the present situation of Japan's aging society as well as some of the solutions, which are attempts to solve these problems. We hope that this will help the Philippines when they face similar problems in the future.

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We analyzed the factors influencing the incidence of falling in a hundred and nice outpatients suffering from rheumatoid diseases. Falling accidents were found in 37 % of the patients and bone fracture (the neck of the femur in 2 cases, metatarsal bone in 1 case, rib bone in 1 case, tibia in 1 case, and radius in 1 case) were found in 5.5% of the patients in 1 year. Incidents of falling and bone fracture were found most frequently in the patients between 65 and 69 years of age. In the younger group (<65 years old), there was a significant correlation between falling and the disease disorders (activity index, ADL score, the joint range of motion, speed of walk and muscle weakness). But in the older (from 65 years old up) patients, there was no correlation between falling and the disease disorders. In the older patients, the lifestyle and complications (e.g. diabetes) were significantly correlated with falling. In the older patients, we should study other factors besides the disorders of arthritis that might influence the incidence of falling.

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The U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Assistive Technology Project (ATP) and the Trankilu (Tranquil) Alternative Financing Program (AFP) both federally funded programs, are initiatives of the CNMI Council on Developmental Disabilities or CNMI CDD charged with systems advocacy and in increasing awareness of the availability and benefits of a broad range of assistive technology for persons with disabilities. Demonstration and training on the use of low to high technology is on of the main focus of these projects.

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In Japan the new law has started to prevent decubitus ulcers since 2 years ago. Our situation has changed dramatically not to leave them as before. I'd like to explain the effect of that new system to get better result.

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Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common problem affecting mobility and subjectively noted pain over affected joints. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of magnet therapy as an adjuvant in alleviating pain and improving functional walking speed in patients with OA of the knee and to describe adverse effects of magnet therapy. The study was done on a local tertiary hospital in the Philippines.

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The Organizing Committee of The 3rd Joint International Congress on Disability and Biophilia Rehabilitation acknowledges and extends its sincere gratitude to the following for their invaluable service and contribution for the Success of this congress.

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