Autism therapies & treatments
Treatment for children with autism can be intensive and isolating. A different approach in early intervention in child care has been introduced to create a more interactive and cost-effective environment for both children with autism and their families.
Read more “Living with Autism Podcasts: Early Intervention in Childcare with Dr Giacomo Vivanti”
Ask an Autism Researcher
A new research study at the Victorian Autism Specific Early Learning and Care Centre (ASELCC) based at La Trobe University’s Children’s Centre, in collaboration with the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre (OTARC), has been published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Read more “New autism research demonstrates positive impact of early interventions”
Ask an Autism Researcher
Dr Giacomo Vivanti & Professor Cheryl Dissanayake
Research underway for many years at La Trobe University has been supporting the very early identification of Autism Spectrum Disorders in infancy and toddlerhood with the view of promoting optimal development by access to early intervention. Recent research by Sally Rogers and her colleagues of the MIND Institute, published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders this week describes the first controlled study documenting outcomes of infants with signs of autism who received treatment in their first year of life, well before the age at which autism is usually diagnosed.
Read more “Children with early signs of autism receive treatment in their first year of life.”
Ask an Autism Researcher
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Dr Giacomo Vivanti
There is increasing evidence that intensive implementation of educational programs can be efficacious in improving outcomes in young children with autism. One of the most promising early intervention programs is the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM), a play-based intervention specifically targeting the educational needs of preschoolers with autism. Research conducted in the US indicates that the program is efficacious in the context of intensive individual home treatment. Read more “Translating evidence-based treatments into effective childcare programs for young children with ASD – yes we can!”
Ask an Autism Researcher
By Dr Josephine Barbaro, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at OTARC and ASD Specialist in Australia’s first Early Assessment Clinic for Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Since beginning research on the early identification of Autism Spectrum Disorders back in 2005 as part of my PhD program, the Social Attention and Communication Study (SACS), I was often asked “What’s the point of identifying children at 2 years of age or younger if there are very few or no services for them?” You see, back in 2005, there wasn’t the Helping Children with Autism Package for families of children on the spectrum (aged 0 – 7), or intervention programs like the Early Start Denver Model – the first intervention model with strong empirical evidence for its effectiveness in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with ASDs. So, at this time, many families had to wait on long waiting lists for early intervention services, as long as 18 months in some cases, to receive a few hours a week of services! It was therefore difficult to convince some people, both in the public and private sectors, of the importance of early detection and subsequent intervention.