Clinic to help self-harming autistic children aims to expand

tomtidgewellNovember 25, 2022

A charity that runs a clinic devising a cure for autistic children who self-harm is raising money to increase frequency

According to Glen Davies, a psychologist who founded the ABLE Developmental Clinic and works with the Pacific Autism Family Network, there are at least 21,000 children under the age of 19 in B.C. who have not been formally diagnosed with autism. Children can be even more. Photo by Francis Georgian /PNG

A clinic that specializes in self-harming autistic children is seeking funding to expand its services.

Such children face long delays in diagnosis at monthly clinics that rely on private donations, says the chief medical officer of the Pacific Autism Families Network. The goal is to offer a special clinic every week.

“We are trying to raise awareness of this clinic because it is sorely needed,” said Dr. Suzanne Lewis.

“There is an urgent need, almost a medical emergency, to meet the needs of children with autism,” she said ahead of Friday’s fundraising event for the Autism Network.

The Autism Network is a charity designed to bring s together.Cutting edge research, assessment and treatment With advanced support for people with autism and their families.

According to autism.org, the most common forms of self-harm are headbanging, hand biting, excessive self-harm and scratching. There is a nature.

In extreme cases, children can self-inflict brain damage or damage their eyes, Lewis said.

Children may self-harm to alter levels of beta endorphins in the brain. Others respond to anxiety, pain caused by ear infections or migraines, or bowel problems. Or they may be acting out of frustration because they were unable to communicate their needs or avoid unpleasant social situations.

Lewis said the clinic was moved from BC Children’s Hospital earlier this year due to the children’s disruptive behavior and need for more space.

A new larger dedicated space provides the room and privacy medical professionals need to assess children in a more natural setting.

Professionals who meet at the clinic once a month to assess the children and work out a treatment plan together can not only examine them in the hospital room, but also watch them play, she said.

Lewis estimates that there are between 500 and 1,000 children in BC. The clinic can only see two or three families a month, even though they have such behaviors that need help due to autism or other disabilities.

She said she hopes to increase the frequency of clinic visits to at least once a week.

Founder Wendy Lithogal-Koccha Pacific Autism Family Network with husband Sergio Coccia The agency’s center in Richmond aims to empower people with autism to do things like participate in grocery shopping, buy gas at a gas station, and get a haircut. It is working to be included.

Established ABLE Developmental Clinic, Pacific Autism Family NetworkThere are at least 21,000 children under the age of 19 with autism in BC, and many more are likely to be formally undiagnosed, he said.

He said it takes about 18 months to two years before parents want their child evaluated, and the best results for children with autism begin before age three.

and those who self-harm “It’s the hardest to treat,” he said.

“Basically what we want to see is quadruple the space,” he said.

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