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The Hatching Hope Foundation brings advocacy and support to Dallas-Fort Worth families… triplets, was diagnosed with autism in 2012 at age 2.5, she struggled to find much-needed information, services and social supports in her area. This struggle motivated Sabrina to commit her life to helping underserved families in Ft. Worth, Texas … she founded the Hatching Hope Foundation, an organization that provides parent training about autism, individual and family support services, and special education advocacy. In 2019, Keshawn tragically passed away from Osteosarcoma, a rare form of … someone who really understands what it’s like to be a parent living with a child with severe autism. Our Facebook support group, Autism Mocha Moms , has been another great way to connect with parents in the community. The group was created to …
Autism Speaks awards $135k in grant funding to support Latino autistic youth in Houston, TX … the transition to adulthood for Latino autistic youth. As a major funder of autism research, Autism Speaks is committed to supporting research and innovation that drives towards improved quality of life and well-being for individuals with autism … Shih. “The grant for this year’s postdoctoral fellowship aims to bridge the service gap in Houston, enhancing mental health support and easing the transition to adulthood for these youth." This year, fellowship applicants were required to focus on … mental health conditions. This fellowship funds a pilot test of this community-developed telehealth program, among a group of 30 Latino autistic young adults and their families, aiming for broader outreach in the region. … Autism Speaks …
Clinician Guide: Program Development and Best Practices for Treating Severe Behaviors in Autism … of life for autistic people and their families.  To improve systems of care for this population, Autism Speaks convened a group of multi-disciplinary experts to develop the Clinician Guide: Program Development and Best Practices for Treating … The goal of this guide is to help providers:  Expand their understanding of intense challenging behaviors in autism  Support individuals experiencing significant behavior challenges who may harm themselves or those around them  Develop …
Researchers outline method to create gene list for autism-linked genetic variants … A multidisciplinary group of autism researchers proposed a new method for identifying whether certain gene changes are linked to autism, in a … know how certain gene changes impact a person with autism, ultimately helping us to develop tailored treatments that will support that person,” said Dr. Thomas Frazier, Ph.D., Autism Speaks chief science officer and an author of the paper. After … an autism diagnosis, providers will be better able to offer autistic children and adults more personalized health care and supports. … Researchers outline method to create gene list for autism-linked genetic variants …
The Autism Care Network works to expand access to autism diagnosis in Canada… becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with the need for autism assessment. We’re fortunate to work with a wonderful group of community pediatricians who are engaged with lots of autistic kids, so we saw an opportunity for them to take on an advanced practice role in autism diagnosis. We began to work on developing the optimal training approach to support this group and came up with a three-step educational process. We’ve done the training three times now and we’re … child communicates, expresses themselves and plays. We also shared information about community resources, how the different supports and services are funded, and how families navigate services. The second phase was mentored assessments in the …
Autism in Africa: Transforming care and services for a brighter future… spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disabilities face stigmatization, delayed diagnosis and limited access to support services. In many countries, challenges in service delivery are compounded by humanitarian concerns like armed … meeting of the minds focused on advances in global science, practice and policy. As I sat among this distinguished group ahead of International Day of Persons with Disabilities, I was proud to represent Autism Speaks alongside my … and UNICEF to launch the Global Report on Children with Developmental Disabilities . Developed with technical and financial support from Autism Speaks, this report is a roadmap for advocates and policymakers in underserved countries around the …
Identical twins with autism differ significantly in severity of social traits… by our environment. It also confirms what we know about the importance of getting intervention as early as possible to support development,” said Autism Speaks Chief Science Officer Thomas W. Frazier. “Repeating this study with larger groups may help us understand those environmental factors where we might be able to best support optimal development for young children at risk for autism.” Using genetic data and clinical information, researchers …
Autism Speaks to host Thought Leadership Summit on Challenging Behaviors… Autism Speaks will convene an invited group of researchers, clinicians, autistic adults and other autism community members virtually on Dec. 3 and 4, 2020, to … with social interactions or might not be appropriate for work or school, to behavior challenges that require significant support, such as aggression and self-injury. There are few programs that provide the level of care needed for those with more significant support needs, and families often face obstacles like distance and financial limitations that keep them from accessing them. …
Autism Speaks executive Val Paradiz appointed to federal autism committee… U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced today that Valerie Paradiz, Ph.D., vice president of services and supports at Autism Speaks, has been appointed as one of 20 new as well as two returning public members of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC), an advisory group on federal autism activities. Along with federal members of the committee from key agencies and departments serving … IACC plays a critical role in deciding where our federal priorities should lie in funding autism services and research to support autistic people of all ages,” said Dr. Paradiz. “I look forward to working with other members of the committee to …
Study finds translation of parent survey is reliable at detecting autism in Chinese children… autism in young children. The Autism Spectrum Rating Scale is a tool for finding children with autism so they can get support. A family member or teacher fills out the survey if they believe a child has autism. Depending on the age of the … it out, there are four different versions of the survey, which was designed for English speakers in the United States. “Supporting children with autism is important not only in the United States but around the world,” said Andy Shih, Ph.D., … a tool that can be used with parent input to find children with autism who need supports and services.” A private research group, the Public Welfare Industry of Health of China, translated and shortened the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale into the …