* Press
Conference on Autism Epidemic - Parents and
Scientists to
Demand White House Conference
CARE
* Dentist
Answers Higher Call
AWARENESS
* Agency Helps
Adults With Disability Live On Their Own
* Autism
Doesnt Keep Family Down
* Parents Rise
To Autism Challenge
* New York
Yankees Announce Autism Awareness Night!
* National
Autism Conference Brings Together Patients,
Families,
Educators
LETTERS
* Who is
Scaring Whom?
* Bill Gates:
Killing Africans For Profit & Pr. Mr. Bushs
Bogus Aids
Offer
READERS POSTS
ADVOCACY
Press Conference
on Autism Epidemic - Parents and Scientists to Demand White House Conference
Wednesday, July 23, 2003, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., Washington, DC Rayburn
Building - Rm. 2203
The number
of autistic children continues to rise. It has been proven that it is NOT better
diagnosis. School districts across the nation are reeling from the budget impact
as they struggle to educate these children. It is estimated that 30,000 more
children succumbed to autism last year. That means an approximate 60,000
parents, 120,000 grandparents, and countless other extended family members were
also affected.
Parents
want to know why such a devastating epidemic is not getting well-deserved
attention. Parents and scientists feel it is imperative to urge President Bush
to hold a White House Conference on Autism to bring this health crisis to
national attention.
On July
23rd, a press conference will be held in Washington. Several scientists will be
speaking on the latest autism research findings and why more money is
desperately needed to find the cause of this devastating disorder, why the
numbers are rising so sharply in such a small period of time, and why the
largest and most expensive medical health crisis in children ever known in
America is getting only 58 million dollars from NIH when other diseases are
getting in the billions.
Currently
scheduled to appear: Congressman Dan Burton (R - IN) Dr. Mark Geier, Dr. Boyd
Haley, Dr. James Adams, Dr. Jeff Bradstreet, Dr. Jeff Segal, Lyn Redwood,
President, Safe Minds Scott Bono, The Autism Autoimmunity Project (TAAP).
Several
other doctors and researchers will submit statements regarding their latest
research findings. Congressmen and Senators will be on hand to lend their
support for more research. Speakers will be added as they are confirmed.
For more details
contact: Laura Bono, ldbono@nc.rr.com,
Phone:
919-403-9443 or Bobbie Manning, mikesmom@sunflower.com,
Theyre
called special needs patients and they need more care than most dental patients.
But there arent enough dentists who treat them .
One who does
is Richard Feldhake. A quarter of his practice at offices in Scottsdale and
Phoenix is dedicated to special-needs care.
His patients
include children and adults who may be physically limited by birth defects,
injury or disease or have mental retardation, behavior disorders or
developmental disabilities such as autism.
They might
have tics that keep their heads and limbs in motion. Some cannot speak. They may
be withdrawn and clench their mouths shut, or violent and land punches and
kicks, seeing the dentist as an invader. Most have a high degree of anxiety.
Their
conditions can both prohibit conventional methods of care and create special
oral health problems because their caretakers dont have much success brushing
their teeth.
Treating
special needs patients isnt a medical specialty, but dentists organizations,
including the American Dental Association, agree their treatment takes special
skills. Because their care is complicated, time-consuming and less financially
rewarding than typical cases, few dentists acquire the skills. Some prefer not
to treat disabled patients, leaving them scrambling for alternatives.
Theyll
stop you at the door. Ive been turned away by two different dentists in the
Valley, said Debra Lawson-Gonzales, 46, whose son, Sean, 18, has multiple
disabilities. They said they were nervous, Lawson-Gonzales said.
A dentist
who treated Sean wouldnt let his mother in the examination room, which panicked
Sean, who is hyperactive and mentally retarded.
A few years
ago, Seans medical doctor referred him to Feldhake, and now Sean has calmed
down in the dental chair. He has even had a root canal.
Feldhake,
43, lists his best attribute as patience.
Everybodys
nervous at the dentist, but you need to have a lot more patience with these
people, Feldhake said. .
For new
patients he does an assessment to determine whether they can be treated in a
normal dental setting, and whether special restraints are necessary.
Then a
treatment plan is created to address the patients needs. That may include
getting a medical history and contacting the patients physician to find out
what limitations need to be observed. .
Treatment
begins with a tooth cleaning, which can take an hour and may require sedation..
Often after an examination, work doesnt proceed until a year later, to avoid
sedating the patient again too soon. Feldhake often uses the services of dental
anesthesiologists.
Part of the
mission is a psychological one, said the dentist. Im friendly, I talk to them
and communicate, look into their eyes, let them know I am friendly, he said.
Theres some intensity to it, but I sit back and take that breath and say,
Gods going to help me get this done.
Over time,
patients can lose their nervousness. Steve Pilkington, a man in his 40s who
lives in a group home in Phoenix, is a patient of about five years who suffers
from cerebral palsy and is a quadriplegic with spasticity, meaning his limbs
flail around.
He is
cooperative. He doesnt have a lot of verbalization, but he understands. And you
can kid him and he laughs, Feldhake said.
Because of
the time consumed in treatment and the fact that sedation is often not covered
by insurers, Feldhakes special needs care operates at a loss, shored up by his
conventional practice.
Promising
changes are in the wind, though. A national group of dentists and doctors was
recently launched to address the special needs patients. And Arizona is working
on providing special training to more dentists.
Until others
hear the call, Feldhake will balance his burgeoning practice.
Feldhake,
who went to Southern Illinois University, has other missions. Hes active with
his wife, Michelle, and two kids in Arizona Indian Scouts, and hunts and fishes.
Every year,
he and fellow-dentist friend Tim Lukavsky volunteer with Alternative Missions, a
group that provides free medical care to people in Helene, Honduras, an
undeveloped community.
We live in
a world where people only want to live with beautiful people, said Feldhakes
friend, Lukavsky. Ricks answering a higher call. People who go to him, go to
someone who understands and helps them break down barriers.
Agency Helps
Adults With Disability Live On Their Own
[This
article along with the following two are from the Oakland Press of Michigan.]
Troy
resident Aaron Freed panicked when he discovered a notice in his apartment on a
recent Friday.
The note did
not suggest that he was being evicted or that there was a problem with the
utilities, but that new carpet would be installed the following Monday.
Immediately,
Freed worried about not being able to make out a check to pay for the
installation. The people who help him with his finances would not be available
over the weekend.
Whats more,
he worried about having to move a great many collected possessions out of his
bedroom and then return them to their rightful places once the new carpet was
in.
The anxiety
Freed experienced is a frequent experience in his life - a symptom of a
condition called Aspergers syndrome. Anxiety precipitated by what a typical
person might see as an insignificant change in ones routine is a common trait
among people with the condition, which is a high-functioning form of the
pervasive developmental disability autism.
West
Bloomfield Township resident Sue Hodess, who has two autistic sons, has done
well to maintain an ironic sense of humor.
I used to
laugh because Id think: Theres not a lot of pressure here. I just cant
die, the 41-year-old mother said.
She and her
42-year-old husband, Ron Hodess, have by no means been spared any degree of the
grief, frustration, exhaustion and desperation many parents of children with
autism experience. But at the same time, they have done their best to celebrate
the joys any parent experiences.
But its
been a struggle. Their 10-year-old son, Jay, was diagnosed with the
developmental disability at age 3. In addition to exhibiting common
characteristics, such as delayed speech, impaired social skills and intense and
prolonged attention to a single object, Jay would scream or cry for hours on
end. Sue said she long suspected the problem was something other than colic.
When he was finally diagnosed, it was like, Thank God, we know what it is
now.
Yet, that
discovery was less than uplifting.
You just want to
be a soccer mom, and suddenly youve become a therapy mom, Sue Hodess said.
There are
few more frightening things parents can hear than that their child has been
diagnosed with autism.
And that is
something more and more parents are hearing, nationally and in Oakland County.
The Autism Society of America reports a 172 percent increase in cases of the
developmental disorder in the past decade. In Oakland County, the number of
students placed in special classrooms for the autistic has risen by more than
400 percent in those years.
There are
variations in severity - but most experts agree there is no cure. Generally,
children with autism will never learn, achieve and communicate as other children
do. Their parents often face a lifetime of physical, intellectual and emotional
demands.
Its very,
very, very stressful, said Vicky Debold, an assistant professor in the School
of Nursing at the University of Michigan.
The New York
Yankees announced that they will host Autism Awareness Night on Tuesday evening,
August 19, 2003, during the 7:05 p.m. game against the Kansas City Royals.
Pre-game ceremonies begin at 6:30 p.m.
The night
will feature a pre-game ceremony recognizing the strides of the autism community
to this point and advances to come in the future. Additionally, locations will
be set up on the concourse outside of Yankee Stadium for representatives to
educate the public on autism through informational literature and speaking.
Baseball for
Autism Awareness, a non-profit autism educational organization, is serving as
co-host of this event and has a limited number of half-price tickets to offer.
Main reserve seats that are normally sold for $33 per ticket are being sold by
Baseball for Autism Awareness for $16.50.
For advance
ticket information, please contact Yankees Autism Awareness Night Coordinator
Joni Jones at Baseball for Autism Awareness, 732-818-1145.
Eddie
Torisky is 46 years old, works 2 1/2 days per week at a Monroeville print shop
and spends his weekends reading and listening to CDs on his boombox in his
bedroom at his fathers house.
He has
autism and is moderately retarded. During the week, he lives in a Coraopolis
group home. He used to live at the Western Center, and his father filed a
lawsuit, still pending, in 2001 when the state Department of Public Welfare shut
down the Washington County facility that had been his home for more than 30
years.
Dan Torisky
will be sharing his experience and advice as a parent of an autistic person in a
presentation at the annual conference of the Autism Society of America, which
begins tomorrow and is based at the Westin Convention Center Hotel, Downtown. It
ends Sunday.
Im going
to tell them that [people with autism] never stop learning, Torisky said.
Never stop challenging them to learn, at their own rate.
Eddie
Torisky wasnt diagnosed with autism until he was almost 11, and at that time
there were no intensive interventions, such as behavioral and speech therapy.
One Saturday
morning when he was 28, his father went to Apel Printing to get some papers
bound and took Eddie with him.
The younger
Torisky had already put the pages in order, and manager Bob Apel asked him if he
enjoyed that kind of work. I can do it, Eddie answered. Apel offered him a
paying job.
Is that a
job in the community? Eddie asked. Apel said, I think Im in the community.
Once home,
the young man quietly told the family dog his good news. Then he went to his
room. What he did next made his father cry like a baby.
The younger
Torisky yelled at the top of his lungs, I got a job in the community, and I
earned it!
He has been
working part time for 18 years now doing collating and what he calls
housekeeping at Apel and the Autism Society of Pittsburgh, of which his father
is president.
The money he
earns is used to defray the cost of his care, Dan Torisky said.
He does
square roots in his head, Torisky said of his son. He does a lot of things
that are amazing but totally useless. He always will need social oversight.
Torisky will
be on a panel with other parents, including Cindy Duch of Penn Hills, whose
8-year-old son Andrew was featured in a story in Sundays Post-Gazette.
If you can
save a parent one additional step, maybe they can get therapy faster or find
something they might not have found otherwise, Duch said. I try and get
involved with things that will help that way.
About 2,000
people are expected to attend the conference, which is being held in Pittsburgh
for the first time, said Rob Beck, executive director of the national autism
society. It will bring together researchers, health care providers, people who
have autism and their families and government officials. More than 120
presentations will be given on basic research, therapeutic interventions and
raising awareness of the condition.
Autism is
estimated to affect up to 1.5 million Americans and recent studies indicate that
the incidence rate is rising dramatically. Beck said that while the U.S.
population increased by 13 percent in the 1990s, autism cases jumped by 172
percent.
Scientists
are trying to uncover the reasons for the startling increase, which does not
appear to be fully explained by a broadening of the autism case definition. Care
costs $90 billion annually and is projected to rise to more than $200 billion in
the next decade.
However,
current funding for basic and applied autism research is about $50 million
annually.
Thats not
nearly enough of a commitment to try and do something about autism, Beck said.
Thats one of the key issues, getting additional funding to address this
national health crisis.
The growing
numbers of children with autism could have a huge impact on school systems and
the provision of special education. Already many affected families are
frustrated by the low funding levels of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act, or IDEA.
If autistic
children are diagnosed early and intensive behavioral services are promptly put
into place, they stand a better chance of living fuller lives, Beck noted.
In many
cases they can be educated, can be able to socialize with other people, can
learn to hold a job and pay taxes and do all kind of other things to become
meaningful and productive members of society, he said.
Estelle
Richman, secretary of public welfare for the state, is establishing an autism
task force to improve the organization, financing and delivery of services and
treatment for people with autism in Pennsylvania, said spokeswoman Stephanie
Suran.
The task
force will include family members, health care workers, researchers and
educators, and plans its first meeting in Harrisburg July 26. It will have nine
subcommittees focusing on early intervention, adolescents, needs of adults and
education and training.
Claude
Allen, deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and
Robert Pasternak, assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative
services in the U.S. Department of Education, will be making presentations at
the conference.
There also
will be sessions about the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and environmental
factors that some have contended contribute to the development or worsening of
autism, Beck added.
At this
stage of the game, theres been no causal relationship thats been
scientifically found, but theres an awful lot of very upset parents who seem to
be able to link the two together, he said. And we believe that there needs to
be significantly more research into this area.
One of the
keynote speakers will be Temple Grandin, an associate professor of animal
science at Colorado State University, who recounted her experiences of having
autism in two memoirs.
Among local
reseachers, Dr. Nancy Minshew, director of the Center for Autism Research at the
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and her colleagues will discuss
how people think and what the brain is doing when people think, as she put it.
Minshew is
one of several people who will be honored for their leadership in the autism
community. The conference gives her an opportunity to talk to parents and offer
hope.
There will
be a cure for autism and it will be in the lifetime of their children, she
said.
Cynthia
Johnson, director of the Autism Center at Childrens Hospital, will be giving a
talk on innovative treatments, including early findings from a drug study she
conducted.
The hospital
recently launched a follow-up clinic for families with new diagnoses of autism.
It was created in response to criticisms that after parents were told their
children had autism, there was often a long lag before services were put in
place.
Families
often felt somewhat at a loss, overwhelmed, abandoned, Johnson said.
* * *
LETTERS
Who is Scaring
Whom?
I found some
of the comments by Dr. Spurgat in the July 9 SAR article (Health Officials Upset
New Law Wont Force Vaccination in Texas) to be rather interesting. In
particular, Dr. Spurgat was quoted as saying Parents who dont want their
children vaccinated because of conscientious objections often are victims of
unscientific information that serves as a scare tactic against immunizations.
He then goes on to state that Its a shame these people are operating off so
much misinformation.
But perhaps
the most interesting comment he makes is Theyre putting their children at risk
and theyre putting my children at risk. Now THAT is a pretty scary statement,
especially coming from someone who implicitly condemns scare tactics almost in
the same breath. How frightening it is when all these misinformed victims are
painted as a threat or a danger to other peoples children, when in reality
their actions could represent the best hope for protecting those same children
(and all children to come).
After all,
who else will ever expose the real issues surrounding vaccinations, and who else
will ultimately force accountability onto the vaccine manufacturers and
government regulators who continually try to shield them? These misinformed
parents may indeed be victims -- of government negligence and corporate greed.
And no one should be told to be afraid of them or their kids.
In the big
picture, they are fighting to protect all our children. I really think that
that any parent who understands the vaccine issues will also understand that.
As for Dr. Spurgat, whos really scaring whom?
- Randy Toni
Ontario, Canada
* * *
Bill Gates:
Killing Africans For Profit & Pr. Mr. Bushs Bogus Aids Offer
[This
strident, polemical response to the Bill Gates article from the NY Times,
reprinted in yesterdays Schafer Autism Report, comes from Greg Palast, who is
the author of the New York Times bestseller, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy.
The opinions expressed belong to the writer and does not necessarily reflect
those of this newsletter. Thanks to Sally Kirk.]
Bring back
Jayson Blair! The New York Times has eliminated the scourge of plagiarized
journalism by eliminating journalism altogether from its front page.
Check this
Sundays edition: Bill Gates is no ordinary philanthropist, gushes a Times
reporter named Stephanie Strom, re-writing one of the digital divas self-loving
press releases. Gates has saved 100,000 lives by providing vaccines to Africans,
gushes Stephanie, according to someone on the payroll of Bill Gates. And hes
making drugs for Africans, especially for AIDS victims, cheaper and easier.
Stephanie knows because she asked Bill Gates himself!
Then we get
to the real point of this journalistic Lewinsky: Those who think of Mr. Gates
as a ruthless billionaire monopolist . may find it hard to reconcile that image
with one of a humorously self-deprecating philanthropist.
Actually,
thats not hard at all.
Stephanie,
let me let you in on a little secret about Bill and Melinda Gates so-called
Foundation. Gates demi-trillionaire status is based on a nasty little
monopoly-protecting trade treaty called TRIPS - the Trade-Related Intellectual
Property Rights rules of the World Trade Organization. TRIPS gives Gates a
hammerlock on computer operating systems worldwide, legally granting him a
monopoly that the Robber Barons of yore could only dream of. But TRIPS, the
rule which helps Gates rule, also bars African governments from buying AIDS,
malaria and tuberculosis medicine at cheap market prices.
Example: in
June 2000, at the urging of Big Pharma, Bill Clinton threatened trade sanctions
against Argentina for that nations daring to offer low-cost drugs to Southern
Africa.
Gates knows
darn well that the intellectual property rights laws such as TRIPS - which
keep him and Melinda richer than Saddam and the Mafia combined -- are under
attack by Nelson Mandela and front-line doctors trying to get cheap drugs to the
23 million Africans sick with the AIDS virus. Gates brilliant and self-serving
solution: hes spending an itsy-bitsy part of his monopoly profits (the $6
billion spent by Gates foundation is less than 2% of his net worth) to buy some
drugs for a fraction of the dying. The bully billionaires philanthropic
organization is currently working paw-in-claw with the big pharmaceutical
companies in support of the blockade on cheap drug shipments.
Gates game
is given away by the fact that his Foundation has invested $200 million in the
very drug companies stopping the shipment of low-cost AIDS drugs to Africa.
Gates says
his plan is to reach one million people with medicine by the end of the decade.
Another way to read it: hes locking in a trade system that will block the
delivery of cheap medicine to over 20 million.
The computer
magnates scheme has a powerful ally. The president could have been reading
from a script prepared by Mr. Gates, enthuses the Times cub reporter,
referring to Mr. Bushs AIDS plan offered up this week to skeptical Africans.
The US press does not understand why Africans dont jump for Bushs generous
offer. None note that the money held out to the continents desperate nations
has strings attached or, more accurately, chains and manacles. The billions
offered are mostly loans at full interest which may be used only to buy patent
drugs at a price several times that available from other nations. What Africans
want, an end to the devastating tyranny of TRIPS and other trade rules, is
dismissed by the Liberator of Baghdad.
We are all
serfs on Microsofts and Big Pharmas intellectual property. If Gates fake
philanthropy eviscerates the movement to free Africans from the tyranny of
TRIPS, then Bill and Melindas donations could have the effect of killing more
Africans than then even their PR agents claim they have saved.
- Greg
Palast
* * *
READERS POSTS
The Sensory
Learning Program is a multi-modal sensory integration experience with over 12
years of success. See
www.SensoryLearning.com or call Rene at 810-632-4017 for more information.
******
I am a writer for
Education Week
www.edweek.com, a national newspaper covering K-12 education. This year, the
topic is special education. We are looking for students to feature in brief
profiles to illustrate challenges or failures in special education. The column
will focus on the students experiences with getting access to the curriculum
taught to students without disabilities, access to the general curriculum. Lisa
Goldstein LGoldstein@epe.org. or 301-280-3167
******
Does anyone know
if a study has been done that looks at a correlation between mercury amalgams in
the mouths of mothers of autistic children. As a mother of two autistic boys,
and with a mouth full of fillings, I cant help but wonder if my sons were born
with a high level of mercury in their bodies that was then added to with all the
mercury in their vaccinations. kelliston@comcast.net
On Wed., July 23
well be holding a press conference at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. to call
for a Presidential Autism Conference. I know many of you will be unable to
attend but we could really use your help. Wed like to pass out packets to every
Senator and Congressmens office if possible and also pass out media packets
with the same information. For a small donation of $15 wed like to include a
picture and short biography of your children with autism spectrum disorders to
be used as a cover page in each packet. Please send your childs photo and short
biography to Jo Pike at JPiker@aol.com To donate call April at 1-800-939-TAAP
to use your credit card over the phone.
******
I would love to
hear about any successful social skills classes or groups that would be
appropriate for a 6 1/2 year old girl with mild Aspergers in the Worcester, MA
area. Kathleen Klauze@auburn.mec.edu
******
Many of you
responded to me at great length and I appreciate the time all of you took. I
will get back to each and every one of you but I have a lot of responsibility
here at home. I am single and work full time and take care of two disabled along
with doing all the housework, yard work, cooking and laundry. Please keep in
touch because then I dont feel so alone. Thank-you all very much. Linda
******
Ive been
introduced to a new food supplement company called MANNATECH, INC. that seems to
be having some benefits on our 8 1/2 yr old autistic daughter. Shes been on
this since June 21st & we are already seeing some small improvements.
www.glycoscience.com &
www.resultsproject.net People can also email me, Carmen, at
gf9164@socket.net
******
Author Nick Martin
is researching the impact of children with special needs on marriage, dating,
and partner relationships. Parents are invited to share their experiences and
recommendations to assist other parents. What have you learned that youd like
to share with others? What worked or didnt? What do you wish you had known
years ago? Email by Oct. 30th NMartin@4accord.com
******
There is a website
for puzzles. It has puzzles cuts from 6 pieces to 247. You chose the cut for
any puzzle on their site. They range from classic,
US map cut,
circle, bulb, and many more. When you subscribe you get
a puzzle a day
sent to you. In your account there is a public and private area where you can
upload your pictures and make puzzles out of them.
www.jigzone.com
******
I received your
name from a behavior consultant in the Boston area. I recently relocated to
Boston and I am looking to work provide ABA consulting to children diagnosed
with autism and their families. Robin Shevland robbie_mitchell@yahoo.com
******
Does anyone know
of a GFCF soy sauce or tamari TRACYLEE30@aol.com
******
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Individuals, organizations, non-commercial and
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posters are obligated to thank all those who take
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DISCLAIMER:
All information, data, and material contained, presented, or provided here
is for general information purposes only and is not to be construed as
reflecting the knowledge or opinions of the publisher, and is not to be
construed or intended as providing medical or legal advice. The decision
whether or not to vaccinate is an important and complex issue and should
be made by you, and you alone, in consultation with your health care
provider.
"A foolish faith in authority is the worst enemy of truth."
-- Albert Einstein, letter to a friend, 1901
"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."
-- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William C. Jarvis, September 28, 1820
"What's the point of vaccination if it doesn't protect you from the unvaccinated?"
-- Sandy Gottstein
"Who gets to decide what the greater good is and how many will be sacrificed to it?"