An autistic boy receives an intervention at the Speech Therapy Unit at the Medical General Clinic-Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine in HCM City. The multidisciplinary "interventions" from psychiatrists,neurologists, primary and special education specialists, speech therapists andhis parents occurred at his home and at the Medical General Clinic - PhamNgoc Thach University of Medicine.
Cao Phuong Anh at the clinic’s Speech Therapy Unit said the boy took part inthe unit's Preschool and Speech Therapy classroom.
According to Hoang Van Quyen, a counsellor for the unit, three interventionmodels in the unit exist: one for early intervention for autistic childrenunder five years old; another for nonverbal autistic children aged five to10, and another for verbal autistic children aged five to10 years.
“Autistic children face difficulties developing communication skills andother skills as well, so multidisciplinary intervention frompsychiatrists, neurologists, paediatricians, ear, nose and throat doctors,nurses, primary and special education specialists, speech therapists andparents is very necessary,” he said.
The unit’s intervention models highlight the important role ofautistic children’s parents.
“At the unit, parents watch psychiatrists, neurologists, primary and specialeducation specialists, speech therapists and others, and are trained inthese intervention ways. The experts explain intervention strategiesfor their children at each stage,” he said.
“They provide different strategies for each autistic child,” headded.
Anh said that many parents with autistic children wanted them to speak andintegrate into society rapidly. But they should understandthat intervention progress takes time and should be carried outin steps. Parents should be patient and follow guidance fromspecialists during the intervention.
“Autistic children need intervention in their pre-language skills to setup a base for communication and language and for social andemotional development. They also need an intervention to developtheir playing skills and behaviour,” Anh said.
Quyen said the unit’s multidisciplinary interventionmodels would be expanded to other provinces and cities.
According to the General Statistics Office, the country had nearly 6.2 millionpeople with disabilities aged more than 2 years, accounting for 6.5 percent ofthe population in 2019. Among these, nearly one million people havean autism spectrum disorder.
Compared to the past, many parents now have better awareness about these disordersand will bring their children to hospitals when they show signsrelated to the disorders.
Pham Thi Kim Tam, chairwoman of the Vietnam Autism Network, said: “However,many autistic children have to wait three to six months for an interventionbecause children’s hospitals do not have sufficient doctors and facilities.”
Moreover, interventions for autism spectrum disorders at hospitals are notcovered by health insurance.
Many parents with financial resources can hire teachers to teachtheir children individually or in teams, or the children can study atspecial schools.
In the first year of life, most babies in Vietnam are taken to healthcentres in districts or hospitals for periodic health exams andvaccinations, but developmental milestones are not assessed.
Evaluation programmes for children’s developmental milestones at healthfacilities in the first year after birth would provide screeningfor autistic children and timely interventions if needed,according to Tam.
A woman from HCM City, who has a 17-year-old autistic child, said: “Ithink that the government should have a centre where autistic youngpeople can be taken care of and raised. The part of the costs for thiscentre’s operation could be from the parents.”
The nearly 15-year intervention journey for her child hadbeen very stressful, she said. "He now is studying at arehabilitation centre for people with disabilities in the city.”
According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, autism spectrumdisorder is a developmental disability caused by differences in the brain.Scientists do not know exactly what causes these differences for most peoplewith ASD. However, some people with ASD have a known difference, such as agenetic condition. There are multiple causes of ASD, although most are not yetknown./.
VNA
