November TCAID: InFocus - REIN-ID Visit to St Joseph’s Liskennett Farm

On Friday, November 10th, PhD student Riley Berg and supervisors Dr. Martin McMahon and Dr. Darren McCausland visited St Joseph’s Liskennett Farm in Co. Limerick to learn more about the equine assisted services they provide to children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Riley is undertaking a four-year PhD project funded by Stewarts Care entitled “Research on Equine INterventions for Intellectual Disability”, or REIN-ID for short. The REIN-ID Project aims to explore the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapy for people with intellectual disabilities at Stewarts’ Regional Equine Therapy Hub in Co. Meath. Stewarts Care CEO Brendan O’Connor was inspired to establish the Equine Therapy Hub after witnessing the success of Liskennett Farm, the scale and quality of its services, and the impact it had on the lives of the people who used them.

The REIN-ID team was warmly welcomed by David Doyle, the founder of Liskennett Farm. David walked us through how the farm provides day services, including their innovative method of training up volunteers that come with each group, reducing on-site staffing costs and allowing their centre to deliver upwards of 13,000 total sessions last year. David gave us a full tour of Liskennett Farm and detailed all of the person-centered services they provide. He explained their ‘Step In, Step Down, Step Out’ model that provides flexible staffing ratios to people they support based on need, providing as much support as necessary and facilitating as much independence as possible. David was recently succeeded by Helen Picha as manager, and under her leadership it is clear that the facility runs with impressive ease and coordination — the horses and the people involved all seem to know exactly where they need to be and what comes next.

Helen took time from her busy schedule to lead Riley and Dr. McMahon on a ride around the trail to enjoy the tranquil setting and experience some of the benefits of horseback riding firsthand. Riley was delighted to learn more about this facility and create valuable networking connections. Many thanks to the staff at St Joseph’s Liskennett Farm for their hospitality and valuable insights on outcomes of equine-assisted therapy for people with intellectual disability. We look forward to collaborating into the future.