Autism care advocate group calls for government attention

TACLOBAN CITY — In line with the country's observance of the National Autism Consciousness Week, a group of parents pushed for more serious attention from the national and local governments for the welfare of autistic children.

The group, Autism Society of the Philippines-Tacloban, said austistic children need special care and a holistic approach to make them more productive citizens.

Lee Marja Mercado, president of ASP-Tacloban, cited the lack of educational facility for children with autism. Not all schools in every local government unit have special education classes resulting in these pupils dropping out of school for their failure to cope up with the usual curriculum, she said.

Mercado said that, in Tacloban City alone, there are at least 50 persons diagnosed with autism who are enrolled in only about four SPED centers. She believes that there are more out there who could be suffering from autism but were either kept at home by the family to avoid humiliation.

She also observed that not all LGUs in Eastern Visayas have created the Persons With Disability Affairs Office, despite the mandate of Republic Act 10070, or the Magna Carta for PWDs, which covers persons with autism.

This has not been fully implemented and, worse, the budget for PWD programs and projects is being shared with programs for senior citizens, creating a fiscal situation that provides lesser chances for priority the programs and projects especially for PWDs, said Mercado.

The ASP-Tacloban is observing the Autism Consciousness Week with Angels Walk for Autism, Zumba for Autism, Risk Reduction Seminar for families with autism patients, and three-day exhibit that showcase the artworks of autism patients, heralding the national theme "Autism Inclusive Philippines: Aim High! Fly High!"

The Department of Health is yet to come out with an inventory of the actual number of persons afflicted with this lifelong mental infirmity. The agency admitted that they face difficulty getting the exact figures especially among families who are in denial and have not submitted their autistic family members for official diagnosis and medical intervention.