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I’ve been reading a lot on social networking sites about the lack of funding for people with Autistic Spectrum Disorders. I’ve spoken with a few parents of people with these conditions. I have agreed that I would try to help them out by including their cases in this article. These two cases are from Canada where apparently it is quite bad at the moment. Mostly I am going to concentrating on UK statistics and funding issues.

‘Can you image a world where no one understood you? A world that consists of silence and confusion. A world where your simple wants and needs are right before you, but you have no way of letting anyone know what you want, if you feel bad, scared or lonely’.

• Taken from Joshuas Page on http://www.fundautismnow.com 

As this quotation suggests having this condition is frustrating when you have huge difficulties with communication. Autistic Spectrum Disorders can be extremely complex developmental disabilities. Unfortunately it’s a lifelong condition that has no known cure. It’s not disabling in a conventional way. The effects of this condition can be devastating if people’s needs aren’t met in the appropriate way. It has been proven that with the right structured support in school and out of school people with this condition have a much better chance of reaching their full potential.

Rather than boring you with statistics, 1 in 100 people are said to have an Autistic Spectrum Disorder in the United Kingdom alone. The number of children being diagnosed is dramatically increasing. It seems that the amount of adults being diagnosed is increasing too but that isn’t officially proven. Last year (2007) the health care commission highlighted some extremely worrying issues relating to the standards of care for people with learning disabilities. They included people with ASD’s within that group. Many adults with lower functioning autism are cared for in specialised care services. In many of the reports from these care services a lot of them failed due to lack of funding. There is no such thing as a straight forward Autistic or Asperger. Because each individual affected has different needs more funding is needed. Personally I feel that these institutionalised settings should be phased out. I have formed this opinion because I’ve been in that setting and I don’t feel that it was appropriate for someone as high functioning as me. I feel that only severe autistics should be kept in those sorts of places. More funding for higher functioning Auties/Aspies in the community is greatly needed. We much stop the authorities from institutionalising people with ASD’s who don’t need to be. Why should someone who is high functioning (non violent at all times) be put with people who regularly attack people and self harm? We should put an end to all this categorising and labelling. I don’t like being classed the same as some of the people I have to live with. Coping with the challenges of this condition is highly stressful on a daily basis. You come up against a lot of discrimination and people trying to take advantage. People judge your actions to be sinister when they’re not. It’s not worth educating the public on these issues because they’re too diverse to explain. It’s something you just have to put up with until they figure it out themselves.

The two cases I’m going to focus on two children from separate families in Canada. A little girl called Delanie and a little boy called Joshua. Both have a diagnosed with Autism. They are similar in the fact that they have been denied ABA/IBI treatment due to funding problems. Joshua has been on the waiting list for 2 years as his parents can’t afford to pay for the treatment. His father has contacted the Human Rights Commission as he feels that the fact his son has had to wait this long is a violation of his human rights. He would like everyone to fill out the petition he has set up to support Joshua to get this treatment. http://www.petitionsite.com/1/petition-our-government-to-cover-abaibi-treatment I can’t tell you much more about this case as I haven’t asked his father any in depth questions. Delanie is one of twin girls. Her twin Mackenzie also has Autism. The difference is her twin receives IBI therapy. The government decided to cut the funding for Delanie’s therapy recently. It’s not fair especially since they’re twins and only one is being funded now. Apparently after an assessment that lasted only one hour they drew the conclusion that they weren’t going to fund one of their twins anymore. According to their father Mackenzie is a lot more advanced in development than Delanie. This seems to be the reason why they came to this conclusion. Is that taking Delanie’s basic right to develop to her full potential? Recent news suggests that this situation isn’t getting any better for the family. The case they’ve filed against the government is at a stand still due to lack of funding. If you’d like to show your support please start by sign their petition http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/delanie-is-worth-it