CONNECTOR.AE 70 CONNECTOR.AE 71 Lifestyle Health and Wellness Priya Boney: Changing The Lives Of People With A Call Throughout the course of an individual’s life, there are certain benchmarks that are hit, and one of the most prominent ones is finding a job that helps contribute to a person’s overall development as well as fulfilling their dreams. With some professions, helping and giving back to the community is an essential part of the job. However, very rarely do people get the opportunity to make a huge difference to many people’s lives, just through a phone call. Connector sat down with Priya Boney, Head of Customer Service and Winners Engagement at Ewings, the operator of Mahzooz, who has been changing the lives of many people, all from behind the scenes. VR room where students are given a headset and learn safety rules through simulations and more. Additionally, for students that are at the adolescence and young adult stage, they are taught daily life skills to help them be more self-sufficient and easily navigate around the house and perform tasks. The centre provides students with a set up of a kitchen, bedrooms, living room and bathroom that mimic their home environment to help them learn and identify what is required to be done when at home, without being prompted. Students in these two categories also receive vocational training, as part of integrating them into society. The centre also has facilities to help in physical education, with students doing two sessions in the gym, which includes equipment from cycling bikes to trampolines and a playground catering to younger children. Students can also participate in swimming lessons, with an instructor and lifeguard on hand at all times. A movie room is also available at the centre, fitted with seats to mimic the setting of a cinema, which allows the students to get used to going out with their families to watch a movie, by creating a real life setting. The centre supports families of people with autism by training them to care for their child in the right way, and are in constant communication with parents on the progress and development of their child. Families can also avail of services from the family consultant and also get support from other families at the centre. Mohammed Al Emadi said, “There is a saying, ‘Prepare a child with autism for the community.’ We look at it differently, we say, ‘Prepare the community for a child with autism’. The population of people are higher than the people that have autism. So it is better to understand a child with autism, his needs and his challenges, that makes his life easier and allows us to make them ready for that.” Autism is a condition that, although can cause a few limitations in a child’s development, with early intervention and care, can lead the person to live their lives to the best of their abilities.
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