These include reducing subsidies, affecting household income, and fear of "Corona"
3 reasons behind the decline in the number of students in "Dubai for Autism"
The center adopted health programs to rehabilitate people with autism and alleviate the suffering of their families.
From the source
Mohammed Al-Emadi: The UAE attaches great importance to people of determination and takes care of their affairs.
picture
The Director General of the Dubai Autism Center and a member of the Board of Directors, Mohammed Al-Emadi, stated that the registration of children in the center witnessed a decline during the current school year by about 50%, compared to the last school year, attributing this to three main reasons that emerged from the circumstances of the pandemic, "Covid-19", namely The students ’families fear that they will be infected with the virus, and the financial income of families will be affected, whether by leaving work or reducing salaries, in addition to the interruption of support allocations from the official authorities responsible for paying tuition fees, especially for Emirati students with autism.
He told «Emirates Today» that «the students’ families are facing difficulty in providing annual fees in light of the repercussions of the Corona virus, and the economic damages that have affected the material support they used to receive, and then the number of students registered for the current year did not exceed 50 students, Including 11 children, citizens, while the number of registered last year reached 90 children, including 28 children, citizens.
He explained that the center has approved the age of admission for the current academic year to include all age groups from three years old to 21 years old, stressing that increasing the age of admission is an initiative to contain the group of autistic people who are over 18 years old.
Al-Emadi mentioned that the decline in the number of registered citizens as a result of the interruption of support allocations from the official authorities responsible for paying the school fees for their autistic children, as for non-citizens, one of the main challenges facing them is leaving work or being exposed to reducing salaries, calling for concerted efforts between the center and members of society and its institutions To allow families whose children suffer from autism spectrum disorder to obtain the necessary care and treatment programs.
He also called for activating the role of corporate social responsibility by establishing long-term partnerships to take care of services and facilities and provide sustainable financial resources for the center, indicating that the UAE pays great attention to people of determination and takes care of their affairs and provides advanced modern services to these important groups in society, supporting and caring for them.
Al-Emadi pointed out that the center has adopted health programs to provide the opportunity for rehabilitation for children with autism and alleviate the suffering of their families in the face of the challenges that face them in light of the repercussions of the Corona epidemic and the retreat of autism's skills due to the suspension of rehabilitative services, stressing that the center continues its efforts in implementing the necessary precautionary and preventive measures. It includes sterilization and disinfection of all educational, therapeutic and administrative facilities, thus providing full protection for students and workers at the center.
He added that the center this year launched a new strategy that includes several axes, represented in extending the specialized service periods of the center and providing two academic periods.
Development of living skills
The head of the autism program at the Dubai Autism Center, the behavioral analysis specialist approved by the Board in the United States of America, Nicholas Orlando, stated that the basic curriculum of the center has been developed to the internationally accredited PEAK curriculum, explaining that the curriculum is based on applied behavior analysis programs, which is one of the most successful curricula popularly used. in America.
He added that there is a wide range of modern programs that have been adopted, including speech and communication therapy, occupational therapy, and behavioral analysis programs, pointing out that programs to develop children's living skills and link them to a therapeutic behavioral analysis plan have been developed to qualify and train children to apply these skills in environments that simulate reality. To improve children's ability to adapt to social situations and to overcome the difficulties they face in various life requirements.
Follow our latest local and sports news, and the latest political and economic developments via Google news