SHILLONG: What is common in Albert Einstein, Michelangelo, Charles Darwin, Amadeus Mozart, Andy Warhol and Emily Dickinson? All these men and women, who were pioneers in their own fields, were autistic.
Autism is a life-long developmental disability. It makes it difficult for individuals to relate and communicate with others around them. Every person with autism is different but his or her needs are the same as any other human being. However, there are several myths associated with the genetic disorder and there is still need for awareness in the country, including Meghalaya.
On World Autism Day on Monday, awareness programmes were organised by many institutes in the city.
Speaking at one of the programmes at San-Ker, director Sandy Syiem stressed the need for more counsellors and autism experts to train children with the disorder that cannot be treated with medicines.
Syiem bemoaned the dearth of mental health professionals in the country. “Children with autism are no different from others. We should not look down upon them,” he said.
According to Syiem, in India 1 out of 100 children are autistic while worldwide the figure comes to 1 out of 60. “In Meghalaya, the figure is almost the same. The only problem is people are not coming forward but through these awareness programmes, people are trying to come forward,” he added.
The autistic children are also not getting any benefit from the state government, which adds to the problem, he pointed out.
Currently, San-Ker has 25 patients with autism. A rally was taken out from Thangkhiew Petrol Pump to Don Bosco Museum followed by a public discussion at Sacred Heart Theological College Hall.
Another programme at Nazareth Hospital focused on the early diagnosis and management of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Among the participants were school teachers, special educators, students, paediatricians, mental health professionals and parents of children with ASD.
The programme in the form of a webcast involved an interactive session. Various aspects of diagnosis and identification of autistic features were shared with the participants.
Dr Samir Dalwai, renowned paediatrician and CEO of New Horizons Health and Research Centre in Mumbai, replied to many queries.
The session also focused on the social communication deficiencies like developmental delays, repetitive behaviours, restricted actions, receptive and expressive language problems.
Dalwai emphasised the need to help a child grow in a safe and protected environment. Most often, the unrealistic expectations of how a child should grow increases the anxieties and frustrations of parents of autistic children.
One more programme was held at Dwar Jingkyrmen on the occasion where students and the staff came dressed in blue to show support for those with autism.
