Red Cross Tasks FG On Autism Needs

L-R: Director-General, Nigeria Institute of Medical Research (Nimr), Prof. Innocent Ujah; Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole and Chief Medical Director, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (Luth), Prof Chris Bode during the visit of the Minister to Luth last Friday.

The Vice Chairman, Ni
gerian Red Cross Society in Anambra, Prof. Peter Katchy, has called on the Federal Government to provide special intervention programme for children suffering from autism disorder.
Katchy made the call in an interview with Journalists  in Onitsha, last Saturday.
Speaking during the  2016 World Autism Awareness Day held every April 2, he said that the provision of special intervention programme would enable autistic children to get the necessary support needed and be catered for properly.
Katchy who  defined autism as a group of complex disorders of brain development characterised by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviours, expressed dismay that children suffering from autism mostly in the rural areas are not usually attended to in schools.
“I call on the minister of education to take the lead to ensure that most of our schools have at least one classroom or department to handle autism cases.
“The Federal Government should also make budgetary provisions for special people including autism children, which should be adopted by the various state governments,” he said.
Katchy,  a professor of Integrative and Alternative Medicine, urged public spirited individuals and corporate organisations to channel their charity gestures towards providing education for people with special abilities.
He advised women to reduce the risk of autism in children by taking prenatal vitamins containing folic acid and eating a diet rich in folic acid before, during and after conception.
The vice chairman who noted that early intervention programmes could help in the treatment of autism enjoined family members to show love and care to such children and as well work closely with trained therapists.
“Early intensive behavioural intervention can help improve learning, communication and social skills in young children with autism,” Katchy stated.
He advised parents with autistic children not to see the challenge as end of the world but take pride in the distinctive abilities and ways their children viewed the world.
World Autism Awareness Day is celebrated every April 2 and the theme of this year’s commemoration is “Autism and the 2030 Agenda: Inclusion and Neurodiversity.