Where has the summer gone? I do believe I say that each summer though. They always fly by too fast for my liking.
School has begun in the Vincent household; however, at this point it only involves me leaving for work one day a week before the break of dawn and Benjamin and John enjoying time with their grandmother or babysitter while I enjoy a nice QUIET 35 minute drive to work. This week was my first week back with the kids (about 18+ on my caseload this year..don't even ask how I do that all in one day!) and as always I am amazed at how much I truly love my profession as an Occupational Therapist (mommy and family being my first). If you do not know a child with a disability I urge you to find a way to meet one --
Many children I work with fall into what is known as the Autism Spectrum Disorder. Click here to find more out about Autism.
Autism facts from the Autism Society :
* 1 in 150 births
* 1 to 1.5 million Americans
* Fastest-growing developmental disability
* 10 - 17 % annual growth
* $90 billion annual cost
* 90% of costs are in adult services
* Cost of lifelong care can be reduced by 2/3 with early diagnosis and intervention
* In 10 years, the annual cost will be $200-400 billion
2 comments:
Having a great nephew that is autistic I can appreciate the job that you do. I know how much the occupational therapist has helped my nephew and his wife with their son.
We had an awesome school run by our developmental clinic for autistic children and it was really neat to see the progress they made. for some reason, the new administrators of the hospital decided that they should focus elsewhere, and now it is no longer running with an "clinic" to take its place. Quite frustrating to me and (moreso) the parents! You're right...early intervention is key. The problems with that...accurate diagnosis and acceptance by parents.
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