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It is another World Autism Day, a day that the United Nations set aside in 2008 “to highlight the need to help improve the lives of children and adults who suffer from the disorder so that they can lead full and meaningful lives.” Since that first diagnosis over 60 years ago, the medical term has echoed so loudly and so frequently.
Around the world, there are millions of beautiful babies who cannot make eye contact or chubby toddlers who cannot laugh. There are also scores of students who are too disconnected to thrive in school. Collectively, they are referred to as children with autism. It literally means “aloneness,” or living in one’s own world. But that “world” creates heartbreak and despair for parents who cannot get them the help they need, when they need it most.
Health experts explain that autism is a developmental disability that typically involves delays and impairment in social skills, language, and behaviour. It is a spectrum disorder, meaning that it affects people differently. Some children may have speech, whereas others may have little or no speech. The disorders run the gamut, from severe cases in which the children don’t talk and have limited intelligence, to relatively mild cases in which children are socially awkward but able to function at a reasonably high level.
The origins of the autism disorder remain a worrying mystery. But there is general acceptance that abnormalities in brain structure or function are at the root. A study found that boys are almost five times more likely to have autism than girls, and it is more common in white children than those of other races.
For many years, autism was rare – occurring in just five children out of 10,000. However, since the early 1990s, the rate of autism has increased dramatically around the world, with figures as high as 60 per 10,000. In 2008, the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that one in 88 American children was diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. The UN says the rate of autism in all regions of the world is high, and it has a tremendous impact on children, their families, communities and societies.
In some countries, the peculiar needs of autistic children have attracted the attention of their governments. For instance, the Australian government has set up a fund to support parents, families, care givers and children from disadvantaged backgrounds and those living in rural and remote areas. In Ontario, Canada, depending on how severe a child’s disorder is, the doctor or psychologist may refer him or her to a provincial autism service provider for autism intervention services. These services are funded by the province’s Ministry of Children and Youth Services.
In Nigeria, the rights and well-being of the disabled, including children with developmental disabilities, are not on the government’s radar at all. Biodun Ogungbo, a consultant neurosurgeon, says though one in about 100 individuals is diagnosed with autism in many countries, there exists very little statistics to determine its prevalence in Nigeria. But at least, over 1.2 million people as of 2012, lived with the disorder in Nigeria, according to a source. Unlike other responsible governments, ours prefers to abandon the growing population of children with autism and their parents to their fate. Though a handful of agencies and corporate bodies offer some help, there is not just one government policy initiative for autism in the country. Beginning with misdiagnosis, children with developmental disabilities, says African Development Foundation, a United States Government agency, are pushed to the edge of the Nigerian society, dismissed as dependent upon others for survival, and considered incapable of ever entering the workforce. While some are locked away from the public, many of these children are pushed to the streets to beg for alms. The result? A depressing loss of human potential.
Yes, human talents like Albert Einstein, a physicist; Lionel Messi, Argentinian football player; Matt Savage, US jazz prodigy; and Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook; were and are some of the many famous people with autism who achieved everything in the world that seemed impossible to others. Now, experts insist that autistic individuals also have the potential to grow and improve.
What are the pieces of advice for parents of newly-diagnosed autistic children and parents of young autistic children who are not acquainted with many of the basic issues of autism? Experts say diagnosis is important because it can open the doors to many services, and help parents learn about treatments that have benefited similar children. Even more than that, advancement in science is fiercely contending with autism. Though still quite expensive, a highly beneficial therapy called, intensive behaviour intervention, that essentially rewires the brain to improve its functioning, is wiping off tears from many eyes. It is said that children who get IBI as toddlers may have few or no symptoms by the time they are four or five. It is soothing for parents to know, therefore, that their kids can live normal, robust lives if their energies and talents are recognised and channelled appropriately.
But government at all levels must step in. The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, says, “World Autism Awareness Day is about more than generating understanding; it is a call to action.” He is right. The National Assembly should pass the 2011 Autism, Down Syndrome and Other Developmental Disabilities Bill immediately. The law must place a duty on the government to produce a strategy for people with autism by making sure that they get the help that they need. As a matter of national policy, adequate provisions must be made for autism advisers and funding for early intervention services.
Around the world, there are millions of beautiful babies who cannot make eye contact or chubby toddlers who cannot laugh. There are also scores of students who are too disconnected to thrive in school. Collectively, they are referred to as children with autism. It literally means “aloneness,” or living in one’s own world. But that “world” creates heartbreak and despair for parents who cannot get them the help they need, when they need it most.
Health experts explain that autism is a developmental disability that typically involves delays and impairment in social skills, language, and behaviour. It is a spectrum disorder, meaning that it affects people differently. Some children may have speech, whereas others may have little or no speech. The disorders run the gamut, from severe cases in which the children don’t talk and have limited intelligence, to relatively mild cases in which children are socially awkward but able to function at a reasonably high level.
The origins of the autism disorder remain a worrying mystery. But there is general acceptance that abnormalities in brain structure or function are at the root. A study found that boys are almost five times more likely to have autism than girls, and it is more common in white children than those of other races.
For many years, autism was rare – occurring in just five children out of 10,000. However, since the early 1990s, the rate of autism has increased dramatically around the world, with figures as high as 60 per 10,000. In 2008, the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that one in 88 American children was diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. The UN says the rate of autism in all regions of the world is high, and it has a tremendous impact on children, their families, communities and societies.
In some countries, the peculiar needs of autistic children have attracted the attention of their governments. For instance, the Australian government has set up a fund to support parents, families, care givers and children from disadvantaged backgrounds and those living in rural and remote areas. In Ontario, Canada, depending on how severe a child’s disorder is, the doctor or psychologist may refer him or her to a provincial autism service provider for autism intervention services. These services are funded by the province’s Ministry of Children and Youth Services.
In Nigeria, the rights and well-being of the disabled, including children with developmental disabilities, are not on the government’s radar at all. Biodun Ogungbo, a consultant neurosurgeon, says though one in about 100 individuals is diagnosed with autism in many countries, there exists very little statistics to determine its prevalence in Nigeria. But at least, over 1.2 million people as of 2012, lived with the disorder in Nigeria, according to a source. Unlike other responsible governments, ours prefers to abandon the growing population of children with autism and their parents to their fate. Though a handful of agencies and corporate bodies offer some help, there is not just one government policy initiative for autism in the country. Beginning with misdiagnosis, children with developmental disabilities, says African Development Foundation, a United States Government agency, are pushed to the edge of the Nigerian society, dismissed as dependent upon others for survival, and considered incapable of ever entering the workforce. While some are locked away from the public, many of these children are pushed to the streets to beg for alms. The result? A depressing loss of human potential.
Yes, human talents like Albert Einstein, a physicist; Lionel Messi, Argentinian football player; Matt Savage, US jazz prodigy; and Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook; were and are some of the many famous people with autism who achieved everything in the world that seemed impossible to others. Now, experts insist that autistic individuals also have the potential to grow and improve.
What are the pieces of advice for parents of newly-diagnosed autistic children and parents of young autistic children who are not acquainted with many of the basic issues of autism? Experts say diagnosis is important because it can open the doors to many services, and help parents learn about treatments that have benefited similar children. Even more than that, advancement in science is fiercely contending with autism. Though still quite expensive, a highly beneficial therapy called, intensive behaviour intervention, that essentially rewires the brain to improve its functioning, is wiping off tears from many eyes. It is said that children who get IBI as toddlers may have few or no symptoms by the time they are four or five. It is soothing for parents to know, therefore, that their kids can live normal, robust lives if their energies and talents are recognised and channelled appropriately.
But government at all levels must step in. The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, says, “World Autism Awareness Day is about more than generating understanding; it is a call to action.” He is right. The National Assembly should pass the 2011 Autism, Down Syndrome and Other Developmental Disabilities Bill immediately. The law must place a duty on the government to produce a strategy for people with autism by making sure that they get the help that they need. As a matter of national policy, adequate provisions must be made for autism advisers and funding for early intervention services.
