Surrey Place Centre:
Raising Awareness About Autism Spectrum Disorder in the
Community
Kelly Alves, Parent and Education Support Supervisor
What is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?
• A word used to describe a neuro-developmental disorder
• ASD changes an individuals brain
• These brain differences make communication and social interaction difficult
• People with ASD may do the same action repeatedly (flap hands, rock back
and forth)
• ASD can impact how someone reacts to sensory information
– Over/Under reactive
• ASD affects people differently
– Often referred to as a ‘spectrum’
How is ASD Diagnosed?
• Doctors or psychologists do a series of ‘autism-specific’ evaluations
with the child as well interviews with parents and caregivers
• Prior to 2013 a person could be diagnosed with a type of Autism
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Autistic Disorder
Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)
Asperger Syndrome
Rett Syndrome
Childhood Disintegrative Disorder
• As of May 2013 a revised assessment manual now uses one term –
autism spectrum disorder
Describing Autism Spectrum Disorder
Triad of Symptoms
Dyad of Symptoms
Social
Social Interaction
Communication
Repetitive
Behaviour
Communication
Interaction
Repetitive
Behaviour
How Common is ASD?
• It seems that we are hearing a lot about ASD
• Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports
1 out of 68 children have ASD
• In Canada the prevalence of ASD is 1 in 77 children
• This is a significant increase over the last 40 years
• Recent report estimating 30,000-35,000 children with ASD in
Ontario
(Auditor’s Generals Report, 2013)
Common Interventions for ASD – Applied Behaviour Analysis
• Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) is a useful way to teach people
with ASD
• ABA uses prompts and reinforcement to help individuals learn new
skills
• Prompts are “gestures, demonstrations, touches or other things we
do to help children will be correct”
(McClannahan &Krantz, 1999, pg. 37)
• Reinforcement is a word used to describe rewards that follow an
action
SURREY PLACE CENTRE:
INCREASING COMMUNITY
AWARENESS
What is Surrey Place Centre?
• Surrey Place Centre is an accredited organization that provides
specialized clinical services to children and adults with a
developmental disability, ASD, or visual impairments
• Our vision is to enable full participation for people with
developmental disabilities and/or autism spectrum disorders
• As an organization we value:
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Collaboration
Accountability
Innovation
Respect
Responsiveness
Programs and Services at Surrey Place Centre
• Surrey Place Centre offers a range of services to children with ASD
and their families
• Services use ABA teaching strategies to help children learn
important skills needed to be successful at home and in the
community
• Parent involvement is often an essential component of these service
options
Services for Children with ASD
• Toronto Autism ABA Services: Free service for children 0-18
living in the Greater Toronto Area with a confirmed diagnosis of ASD
• Small groups using ABA strategies to develop communication,
social skills, daily living skills and emotional regulation
• This service provides education to parents/caregivers on how to
apply ABA strategies which will help their children learn, maintain
and generalize skills
Services for Children with ASD - Continued
• Toronto Partnership for Autism Services (TPAS):
• The Toronto Partnership for Autism Services (TPAS) is a
community-based service that helps children with autism and their
families through Intensive Behavioural Intervention (IBI)
• IBI is a scientifically proven intervention with the goal of increasing
the rate of learning for children with autism
• When IBI is effective children show substantial improvement in
language, cognitive ability, and adaptive behaviour
• Children have different outcomes, with research suggesting 40% to
50% of young children may make substantial progress over a 1 to 2
year period
Services for Children with ASD - Continued
School Support Program
• Collaboration between
the Ministry of Children
and Youth Services and
Ministry of Education
• Provide training and
consultation to publicly
funded school boards and
school authorities
TRE-ADD Program
• Comprehensive day
treatment program that
provides services for
children and youth with
autism and related
developmental disorders
with multiple and complex
needs and their families
Where Can I Get More Information?
• Surrey Place Centre wants to make it easy for people to access our
services
• Anyone may refer an individual with a developmental disability,
autism spectrum disorder or visual impairment to Surrey Place
Centre for assessment or treatment services
• Please visit our website www.surreyplace.on.ca for more information
about eligibility for the programs and services discussed or to make
a referral