Autism Classes Provide Support to Families and Caregivers
September 12, 2006
In 2000, Children’s providers realized that parents of children recently diagnosed with autism needed more information than the providers could give them in a regular appointment.
To meet this need, faculty members volunteered their time to offer the first “Autism 101” class in 2001. Five years later, this idea has grown into a full-fledged yearly program that involves classes at Children’s and at teleconferencing sites throughout Washington for both parents and caregivers.
In addition to the Autism 101 class, which provides general background information, families and caregivers may now choose from nine different classes in the Autism 200 series.
Children who are autistic will get the best services by having very knowledgeable and active families.
~ Dr. Charles Cowan
Topics include communication in both pre-verbal and verbal children, addressing challenging behaviors, family relationships and the legal aspects of autism. All classes are held at Children’s in the evening.
To respond to interest beyond the Seattle area, in 2003 Children’s began to use teleconferencing to include families in other communities, including Aberdeen, Anacortes, Longview, Olympia, Wenatchee and Yakima.
This program has grown thanks to the commitment of many people both at Children’s and in the community.
Children’s providers from the Neurodevelopmental Program, Speech and Language Therapy and Child Psychiatry have volunteered their time to teach the classes since the program’s inception. Faculty members from the University of Washington, community psychologists and community speech therapists also volunteer as teachers.
In addition, Children’s has received helpful input from families through the parent support and advocacy group, Families for Effective Autism Treatment (FEAT).
“Children who are autistic will get the best services by having very knowledgeable and active families,” says Dr. Charles Cowan, chief, Autism Diagnosis Clinic and clinical director, Care Coordination Services. “This is our effort to help parents understand how to use resources in the communities to help their kids.”
For more information, visit our classes and events page.