June 5, 2019, CBC: Hundreds of N.S. youngsters with autism wait for intervention program—Autism Nova Scotia says there are a record 222 children on wait list for early intervention treatment https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/early-intervention-autism-program-wait-list-1.5162108 Mary MacKinnon had been waiting for a call inviting her four-year-old son to start Nova Scotia's early intervention program for children with autism spectrum disorder. The call never came. MacKinnon's son, Brody Besso, is starting school this September. He was one of hundreds of children in the province on a wait list for the Early Intensive Behavioural Intervention Program (EIBI). … As of last month, there were 222 children eligible and waiting to access EIBI, according to figures provided by the Nova Scotia Health Authority. That's up from 175 in September 2018. Cynthia Carroll, executive director of Autism Nova Scotia, said 222 is the most children she has ever seen on the list. She said hundreds more are waiting anywhere from 18 to 24 months to be diagnosed with autism. After the diagnosis, families can often wait years to access EIBI. "As you have wait lists upon wait lists, it can bottleneck a system," said Carroll in an interview at the Autism Nova Scotia office in Halifax. "I think that's where it can get concerning, on the question of are children getting dangerously close to missing the treatment window?" she said…. Heather Osborne-Vincent, right, of the IWK Health Centre says the number of children on the wait list is constantly fluctuating. (CBC) But she also acknowledged that the prevalence of autism has been increasing, and so "we're seeing that impact our wait-list numbers." On Wednesday, the Health and Wellness Department announced a new pilot program that will provide one-on-one coaching to parents of toddlers with autism, using play-based activities to help develop communication and social skills. The program, which is being offered in Halifax, will cost $2 million over four years. It aims to help 35 children between age one and three in the first year, and 50 children in each of the following three years. 'Are we doing the right thing?' MacKinnon started noticing developmental delays with her son when he was about 18 months old, but he has to wait nearly two years to see a speech therapist. At that appointment, the therapist suspected Brody may have autism. They then had to wait another year for an assessment…. NOT WHY, BUT HOW MANY TIMES
top of page
Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
Search
bottom of page