Adam

Friday, 08 May 2009 00:00

Our son, Adam, was born August 12, 2002. When he was about three-and-a-half years old, he had his first eligibility assessment for the Ministry of Child and Youth Services’ Autism Intervention Program. After being told he wasn’t eligible, we requested an appeal, which was completed, and the decision wasn’t overturned. After significant pressure, a second assessment was granted when Adam was 5, and once again, eligibility wasn’ft granted. The assessment team didn’t feel IBI was the most appropriate intervention strategy. When we provided published data to show all ASD children benefit from ABA/IBI, and made a request for a trial, we were once again turned away.

It was suggested Adam would be best served by his school, and an ABA program developed and managed as part of his IEP by the school and school board. Our position is that the MCYS and the Ministry of Education have obligations to meet Adam’s needs, and neither ministry has been meeting their commitments.

The MCYS is unable to provide adequate funding for all children in need. It is managing this gap by extending wait times and, recently, not granting eligibility in the first place. The MOE is not holding school boards accountable to the Education Act’s requirements to meet the needs of Exceptional Students like Adam.

The evidence showing ABA/IBI as the best available intervention for ASD children is indisputable. The Ontario government regularly says funding is in place for programs to ensure children receive this treatment; it’s time to educate the public about the gap between these statements, and the reality our children experience every day. This gap is unacceptably large, and action needs to be taken to make our elected government officials accountable.