Are DD Growing In Numbers?

I find the following statistics staggering!

"One out of 10 children born today is diagnosed with a developmental disability including autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, and Prader Willi. One out of every 100 children is diagnosed with autism. Eight out of 10 families raising a special needs child is experiencing divorce, and a disabled child is three times more likely to experience child abuse than a child without special needs." by Alan Duretz, July 6, 2010, writing in the Sun-Sentinal about groundbreaking for JAFCO Respite and Family Resource Center for Children with Developmental Disabilities. (Just click on the title to read the full article.)

Are the numbers of people with dd increasing or have there always been so many and society's awareness expanding?

I am heartened to read creative approaches to meeting such need.
The JAFCO plan sounds comprehensive. Is their approach unique?

Do you have related experience? as family who has used such services or as provider or team member who have offered them? I am so interested to hear what is being offered: what is successful and why, not successful and why, too.

Life & Work of Dr. Stanley Greenspan

Autism & DD Pioneer

Speaking from the points of view of a sibling who once was part of her sister's caregiving family-team, current guardian, nurse, and former developmental therapist, I fully endorse the basic maxim that learning must wait on maturation. What this means is that a person cannot learn something until his/her brain-neuro-muscular system is sufficiently mature to support the learning. With developmental disabilities, the challenge is: how best to support the brain-neuro-muscular maturation. And, as anyone interested enough to be reading this blog already knows, no two individuals are alike, so the approach to each must be responsive to the cues and clues provided by the person receiving the work.

Here is an excellent article honoring the life and work of Dr. Stanley Greenspan who, the article recognizes, made significant contributions to developmental work with children who have autism. I would recommend it to caregivers and family members of people with other developmental disabilities, too.

From my 61 year-old sister, Kathy's experience, I know that the article's use of the word , "children" should be generalized to "people" and the word "autism" should be generalized to include other forms of developmental disabilities.

Much of the article's description of Dr. Greenspan's methods also can be said of the Feldenkrais treatment (another approach to developmental, neuro-muscular/cognitive work) that my sister receives: Her diagnoses include cerebral palsy, cognitive delay level: 2-3years old & epilepsy. Even at her advanced age, her progress with this work has been consistent to that described in this article pertaining to children with autism. Credit must also be given to the reinforcement by her caregivers in the ICF/MR-NF where she lives and to the sensitive work of one physical therapist, in particular, who, early on in her work with Kathy, commented that she almost always sees cognitive & verbal progress in children when they are finally able to walk. It made sense to her that Kathy as an adult would be having a similar response.

Dr. Stanley Greenspan Dies,

Founder of Floortime & Developmental Approaches
To Autism Therapy
Source: AMDC Autism Examiner by Mike Frandsen April 28, 4:02

"Dr. Stanley Greenspan had a profound impact on developmental approaches to autism therapy.
At last November’s annual Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders conference in Bethesda, Maryland, Dr. Stanley Greenspan was walking and talking a little bit slower than he had in previous years. The reverence and respect that the audience had for Greenspan was palpable, and at the end of his speech, the crowd gave him a standing ovation. The people in the audience knew they were witnessing something special. 

Greenspan, the founder of Floortime and the Developmental, Individual Differences, Relationship-based model (DIR) for autism, died yesterday. 

Greenspan established the ICDL in Bethesda to advance the identification, prevention, and treatment of developmental and learning disorders. A message on ICDL’s website calls Greenspan, “the world's foremost authority on clinical work with infants and young children with developmental and emotional problems. His work continues to guide parents, professionals and researchers all over the world.”

 To read the full article, click on the title of this post. Readers comments beneath the article are also compelling.
Saskia

*********************INTERACT************

Hybrid Day Care
&
Professional Arts Center
MINNEAPOLIS

Here are excerpts from an MPP Downtownjournal article by Gregory Scott about a program that, without even trying, seems to both stretch and challenge the concept of community inclusion!

"A hybrid day care and professional arts center, Interact admits people with disabilities on a selective basis. Those accepted train professionally in performance and visual art, studying with an Interact staff made up exclusively of artists, musicians, writers and actors, all of who currently work in Minneapolis. Right now, Interact serves more than 90 clients. It is the only day care facility in the nation to offer professional opportunities to the disabled in both the visual and performing arts."

"Since the early 1980s, Calvit has been putting artists with mental illnesses, brain injuries and physical and developmental disabilities on stage, producing aggressive theater pieces that ........"

I came away from the article with mixed feelings. See what you think. To read the full article, just click on the title of this post.

Saskia

Pediatric & Special Needs Dental Clinic

NEW DENTAL SERVICES
Seattle

Special needs children in the Seattle area will soon have a new option for dental care. Opening of the Washington Dental Service Early Childhood Oral Health (ECOH) clinic will soon result from collaboration between Seattle Children's Hospital and the UW School of Dentistry. September 2010 is when the service is planned to open in a former Navy Administration Building at Magnuson Park (the former Sand Point Navel Air Base).

Reported to be unique in the US, the clinic will provide educational opportunities for dental students and the possibility for development of improved models of pediatric (ages 1-21) and special needs oral health care. In addition to dental specialists, ECOH's multidisciplinary health care team includes pediatricians, psychologists, social workers and public health practitioners. Dental work under general anesthesia will be possible. Find more information at http://dental.washington.edu/departments/ped/ecoh.php . Just click on this post's title.
Saskia

***********A REGULAR GUY***********

Excepts From a Funny & Moving Book

Here are excerpts from an enjoyable, and eye-opening story by Barbara Shumaker. I recommend a visit to the website cited below for the entire piece.

'"we got a letter from an attorney asking us to contact him about the bicycle accident involving Matthew. It turned out that while riding his bike, Matthew had apparently collided with a young boy on his bike the month before.

"Matthew? What's this about a bike accident?"

"Who told you?"

"Someone sent me a letter. Was the boy you bumped into hurt?"

"Pretty much."

"Dear God.
Was he bleeding?"

"Probably. Am I in trouble?"


My husband and I came to the heartbreaking conclusion that Matthew was no longer safe in the community where he had grown up, and his impulsive actions were putting others in peril. He needed more supervision, more than we or the local school could provide."

"The good news now is that Matthew is thriving at Camphill, and is an important part of its community of disabled people. He goes to class, cooks and does his own laundry. He prunes trees, tends an organic garden and takes care of the grass. During the winter he shovels snow gleefully, and has become fascinated with weather patterns in the Northeast. He brags about his new found responsibilities, and tells us he is good at hard things."'


The entire story appeared in the on-line newspaper, SF GATE, March 15, and in the SF Chronicle. Read it at : http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/01/15/CMGQIF603V1.DTL#ixzz0jFDn9asl

Barbara Shumaker has written a book about her son, Mathew: It is available on her very resource-rich website: http://www.laurashumaker.com/?p=120

Camphill Special School is a private, non-profit residential and day school in rural Pennsylvania. A "Waldorf" school, it was founded and is operated according to the philosophy of Rudolf Steiner. I found my visit to their website an inspiring experience that expanded my sense of the possibilities.
Saskia

Kishorit Therapeutic Community: Israel

I've been reading a book, Rachel in the World - A Memoir; and the author took her daughter to this place in Israel. It is a self-sustaining community. I think this would be wonderful for some of our folks! Here is a link to it - http://www.kishorit.co.il/SiteFiles/1/1689/13030.asp -
Pandiecats

From Mainstreaming to Specialty School?

Could this proposal have merit?

By Carl Orth | The Suncoast News NEW CHARTER SCHOOL (excerpts)
Published: March 6, 2010
HUDSON - Potential is a terrible thing to waste. So Emile Laurino hopes his concept for a new charter school will go to the head of the class. Families are looking for a different approach to education for their children with developmental disabilities, according to an "action plan" for the charter school. " They want something different than the traditional classroom," Laurino explained in the statement. "Once they graduate from school they want to go to work; they want to provide service and help others; they want to be an integral part of their community."
Laurino, the chief executive officer for the Center for Independence in Hudson, believes such a school could cater to teens and young adults with developmental disabilities ages 16 to 22. "Young adults preparing themselves to go out into the world of work" is how Laurino sums up the mission of the proposed educational facility "I'm hearing more and more" the need exists to fill this educational void", Laurino said.

"If enough people show an interest, the Center for Independence would work toward setting up the specialized school as a separate nonprofit corporation with its own board of directors," Laurino said. As a charter institution, the Center's school would be privately operated, but would be under the supervision of the Pasco County School District. Laurino, his staff and board members of the Center for Independence already belong to many community groups, including Seven Springs Rotary Club and Chambers of Commerce. So they might be able to draw upon local resources.
The charter school motto could become "Everyone Has the Right to Know All They Can Know and Be All They Can Be," the action plan concludes.
What do you think?