Autism conference in Kitchener
Posted Jun 11, 2010 02:44:57 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
KidsAbility is marking a year of accomplishments at its Autism Day conference today.
KidsAbility, Director of Medical Services, Dr. Janet Speight tells 570 News their current tally for autistic kids under their care is roughly 230.
She says roughly 30 of those children are in intensive behavioural intervention services; another 200 have less severe Autism Spectrum Disorder, and need services like speech therapy.
And Speight says they still have extensive wait lists, and getting increases in funding will be a challenge in the year ahead.
But Speight says this past year they received a $650,000 increase in base funding, which she says helped stabilize their finances.
Looking ahead at other challenges for the coming year, she hopes they can create “standard pathways” of how kids move through services and therapies.
Speight also hopes they can smooth out the transitions for autistic kids — and their parents — moving from care centres and programs into mainstream schools.
Today’s Autism Day conference at Bingemans had some 450 delegates attending.
