Medical device helps kids experience the joys of walking

A children’s centre with deep roots in Thornhill has won a Canada-wide contest for an innovative medical device that helps kids walk upright.

Kayla’s Children Centre (KCC) is the winner of a Trexo robotic walker, which helps children with Gross motor developmental delays, such as children with cerebral palsy.

The centre, which merged with Zareinu Educational Centre of Metropolitan Toronto, a Jewish school for kids with disabilities that use to provide a summer camp, has become a valuable resource for community members, helping children by providing educational, therapeutic and recreational programs for those 18 and under with varying developmental and physical disabilities.

“What I love about KCC is that the whole community comes, and they support the children. We’re not here just to provide schooling. We’re not just here to provide therapy. We’re looking at the whole child and really providing opportunities all under one roof,” said Lowell Kwan, a physiotherapist at KCC.

Kwan, who came to the centre in 2019, has already seen buzz from the community surrounding the Trexo walker.

“I really love seeing that big community piece that we have here and think that really came to light when we were doing this giveaway competition because we had so much support from everywhere. We’re so thankful for that,” she said.

An anonymous donor made it all possible. The device is estimated to cost between $85,000 and $100,000 depending on the size of the walker.

“It really means a lot to us because this is a really  —  it’s an expensive piece of equipment. It’s valued at (around) $80,000 and it’s cutting edge,” said Kwan.

The story behind the device is a personal one for Trexo Robotics founder Manmeet Maggu, who studied robotics at the University of Waterloo and invented the device when he saw a gap in assistance for children affecting his nephew.

“My family’s life and my life took an interesting turn when, a few years ago, my nephew Praneit was born with cerebral palsy … it is the most common physical disability among children … for Praneit, among other things, it meant he would not be able to walk,” said Maggu in a TEDx Talks video describing the story behind Trexo.

“It inspired me to find a solution,” said Maggu in the video.

Watch the full TEDx Talks video below: