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Home | OMNI News - Autism - A Dark World.
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Watch our series of reports on OMNI 2's "South Asian Edition"
Autism is a disease that affects thousands of people each day. It is often described as a neurological dysfunction, and while it is, it is best described as a life-long disability. It impacts normal brain development, leaving most individuals with communication problems, difficulty with usual social interactions, prone to repeat specific patterns of behaviour, and a limited ability to participate in various activities and interests.
At one time, autism was thought to be a rare disorder, however more recent studies have estimated autism to be as high as 20 per 10,000 live births. Autism tends to be three-to-four times more common in boys than girls. Currently, there is no medical test, such as a blood test, to identify the disease.
Autism may be accompanied by other handicapping conditions, such as seizures or considerable intellectual delays. Most autistic individuals have no physical disabilities and appear "normal". However, on the most part, autistics generally display the following characteristics: short attention span, self-injurious behaviours, odd responses to sensory input, abnormalities of mood, abnormalities in eating, drinking or sleeping, unusual fears or anxieties, and the presence of special abilities.
This week on OMNI 2, reporter Angie Seth gets up close and personal with families who have autistic children and the trials and tribulations they have experienced as a result of this dark disease. You will get an in depth look at what the needs of these families are, as well as what the government is doing, what it should be doing and what progress has been made. But it is a long road ahead, and you’ll find out what these families say, and what needs to be done next.
You will also meet Suniti Shah. Her son Hasit was diagnosed with autism when he was sixteen. For years Hasit has been living in an institution. Shah says when her son was diagnosed; he went through several different assessments. She claims as a result, the government felt it best to keep Hasit in an institution. Shah feels she is very capable of caring for her son and wants him to come home, “He doesn't need to be locked away. He doesn't need to be restrained. He does not need to be left in a place where he does not belong,” she says.
One in one-hundred-and-sixty-five persons are diagnosed with autism, and the numbers continue to increase. For example, in the Niagara region alone, there are seven-hundred known children diagnosed with autism. It is estimated in this area, there are at least one thousand individuals affected, that are not recorded.
Flavia Orvitz is the president of the Niagara region chapter of the Autism Society of Ontario. She says at this office hundreds of families come for information and for support. Support is a crucial element for these families. According to Orvitz, there is a very large incidence of divorce and problems with families raising children with autism. She says the typical family already has issues with money and when you put this disease into the mix, it makes it even more difficult. “The stress level on these families is just huge,” she says.
Stress is just the tip of the iceberg for Suniti Shah. She has now taken her case to the courts. A battle she says she is not willing to back down from, until her son comes home.
There is no known cure for autism, it is a life-long disease that affects each child differently and is a 24-hour job. Although claims regarding "cures" have been made, they have yet to be proven. That is why it is so important for families like the Shah’s to get support from agencies like the Autism Society of Ontario.
Fore more information, you can log on to the Autism Society of Ontario’s website at www.autismsociety.on.ca
Written by: Angela Spadafora
Reporter: Angie Seth
