Search
Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Waivers… states to accomplish certain goals, such as reducing costs, expanding coverage, or improving care for certain target groups. Through these waivers, states can provide services that wouldn’t usually be covered by Medicaid. For instance, … states, there are substantial waiting lists to receive those waiver services. Medicaid HCBS fund the majority of lifelong supports that people with autism and their families rely on throughout their life spans to live, remain safe and participate … services individuals need to live in the community. This may include case management, transportation, home care or direct support, respite, adult day services, employment supports, assistive technology, respite, and therapies (speech, …
Cheryl Chafos honors her late son, Zachary, by advocating for autism training among healthcare professionals… His younger brothers were now so scared they often locked themselves in the bathroom. Cheryl and Tim were looking into group homes but none would take him while he exhibited aggressive behavior. But they couldn’t handle him on their own … away. For 19 years Cheryl spent countless hours advocating on Zach’s behalf with school staffs, doctors, therapists, support agencies and others-as well as driving to therapies, consultations and events. She had spent the last 59 days up … is needed to better recognize and address mental health issues in those like Zach with challenging behaviors and high support needs. Research and clinical programs supported by Autism CARES Act could help develop more personalized treatment …
Bullying Facts & Figures… The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines it as any unwanted aggressive behavior(s) by another youth or group of youths, that involves an observed or perceived imbalance of power, and either is or likely to be repeated. Common … and bullying. Note: If you’re thinking about suicide, are worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline network is available 24/7 across the United States. It is free and confidential. …
Video: Meet Bryan B.… I’ve had throughout my life, I would never come this far. My parents and my sister sacrificed a lot for me. Without their support during every step of my journey, I would not have been able to achieve any of the things I have up to this point in … as a child in elementary school. She was at my speech and occupational therapy appointments every day – making sure I was supported. This is what helped me grow a lot closer to my sister as I got older and also helped me to better understand my … and a news piece about safe sex in sex education, among many other topics. As far as building a social life, I had a core group of friends, but I was able to get along with a lot of people. I had become much more charismatic by this time, too, so …
Members of the autism community explain how they overcame bullying to reach their full potential … felt worthless like I shouldn’t be here because I didn’t deserve to be. But with the help of my faith and the love of my supportive family and friends, I now go to an amazing school, make amazing grades, have an amazing and supportive group of friends! I’m also on the varsity cheerleading team and sing in my school’s choir! Because of the experiences I’ve …
Teacher seeks advice: Student with autism intimidates others … to get the materials he needs – demonstrating polite behavior toward the other students in the process. Use words or visual supports (picture cards) to remind the student of rules (waiting turns, no pushing, no grabbing, etc.) before starting an … firmly ask him to put the item down and give him a brief time out (set a timer for, say, a minute) before he can rejoin the group and try again at appropriate behavior. If his behavior is more challenging or longer lasting, work with his … he needs to wait for his turn. Keep it simple. We suggest offering two alternate activities that you know he enjoys. Visual supports can be particularly helpful for this strategy. For instance, you can offer him two cards with pictures of the …
Reflecting on my nonspeaking autistic son's 40th birthday… home. I smile when you take selfies with me because you seem to like that. I continue to need your help, understanding, and support in many ways. Fourth. Let go of your anger. You’ve written about how the loss of the perfect son you dreamed of … to speak, read, or write. Thanks to your love and advocacy on my behalf, I live the safest life possible for me in a group home where I can live with support out in the world. I love our car rides and walks in the park when you visit. These days, when you come to visit, I …
ATN@Work: Personalizing hospital care for children with autism… the lead author of an Autism Treatment Network study that helped develop a model program for tailoring in-patient care to support kids with autism At Mass General Hospital for Children, Dr. Sarabeth Broder-Fingert discusses a patient’s … Right after that eye-opening experience, I thought there must be other hospitals that have developed ways to support children and families affected by autism when they come into the hospital. So I set out to find these programs and … would then go in the child’s hospital file for every member of their care team to see. One caveat, the clinicians in the group cautioned, was that if the document was more than, say three page, it might not get used. So we needed to create a …
Real world autism interventions… appropriate, with a qualified healthcare professional and/or behavioral therapist. For the last decade, Autism Speaks has supported the highly successful research of psychologist Connie Kasari, of the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. … Autism Speaks’ public health team to develop and deliver the World Health Organization Parent Skills Training program to support the development of children with autism in underserved communities worldwide, including the United States. In this … physically touching the device’s buttons to communicate. We have published several studies from our work with this first group of children. The successful results led to an Autism Center of Excellence grant that enabled us to enroll an …
Auditory Processing Disorder… that her EEG cap is on. These insights, we believe, are the first step to developing personalized interventions that can support communication and improve quality of life. I’m pursuing this work under the mentorship of Helen Tager-Flusberg, … need it most Around a third of children and adults with autism have severe language impairments, and we believe that this group is likely to be more affected by auditory processing disorders. But it can be challenging to study auditory processing …