In fact, many activities witnessed in Ukraine in terms of disabled individuals from the past to the present are not far from the world of autism. In today’s conditions, although the number of studies increases, more accurate results are obtained and even the technology is quite advanced, the situation for individuals with autism in Ukraine is not the same as it is for people with autism in the rest of the world.
5 Most Prominent Problems of Parents Who Have a Child With Autism in Ukraine
- Individuals with autism and their families receive almost zero government support.
- The educational and psychological support provided to parents of children with autism is quite inadequate.
- In small cities, there is a serious inadequacy or absence of educators to provide adequate education to their children with autism or professionals to take their children with autism.
- The fact that the government does not help with therapy and rehabilitation, and the costs of the therapies it provides are quite high.
- Even if their child shows 100% autism symptoms, there is no qualified professional to have them checked, or the existing professionals are not competent enough.
5 Most Prominent Problems of Professionals in Ukraine
- There is no education provided by the government and the education given in private schools is also very expensive.
- The fact that educational materials are not provided by the government and that the teachers who provide the training are not sufficiently qualified.
- The fact is that current teachers are not sufficiently aware of autism and have no experience in working with individuals with autism. They also explain the existing knowledge theoretically.
- Lack of autism intervention programs across the country. Insufficient existing diagnostic criteria to evaluate autism.
- When the correct diagnosis can be made, parents who have a child with autism do not agree to work with professionals.
Throughout history in Ukraine, children with all kinds of disabilities, including those with autism, have been hospitalized or abandoned in orphanages. But in 1991 and after Ukraine gained its independence, some changes took place. Especially children with autism are allowed to live with their families. Few of them went to school. The reason why very few of them received this training was that there were not enough trained and knowledgeable educators. The absence of schools that could train qualified teachers or provide professional training was another policy of the country. At that point, parents of children with autism were also helpless in terms of information and support. In 2011, some changes began to occur.
Since 2011, there has been an increase in autism awareness activities and support for individuals with autism. Tremendous strides have been made in the support and services to be provided to individuals with autism. In 2013, when Ukraine witnessed the Euromaidan movement, everyone started to have the right to equal education and include individuals with autism in this equality. While a policy of more freedom for all was followed, individuals with autism were also included in this policy.
It was a disappointment that Euromaidan did not have a long life. By 2014, it began to go unrecognized. Since then, the people of Ukraine have been fighting not only for individuals with autism but for all their democratic rights. They entered into an endless struggle with Russia.
It is very difficult to find sufficient and useful resources for parents of children with autism living in Ukraine. It is almost impossible to access it, especially in their own language. These parents get together by organizing conferences from time to time, sharing their knowledge, or inviting a professional to try to clear their doubts and get professional support. Thanks to these events they organize, they also try to raise awareness.
While these awareness activities became widespread in big cities, assistance was provided for individuals with autism living in small cities to participate in these activities. This increased the number of professionals knowledgeable about autism, and the assistance they provided in their own language was of great help to these families.
MOYADUTUNA
The owner of this institution is Katerina Vorobey, who has a child with autism. He had a 10-year-old boy with autism named Leonid. He is a father who studied economics but chose this profession after his child was diagnosed and opened an institution where he could manage himself. There are so many such stories. How strange that there are people living similar lives wherever they are in the world. Moyadutuna means “my child”. They took lessons from Israeli ABA Therapist Yulia Erz and got certificates. They went to Moscow and received this training from Yulia Erz in person.
The center serves children with autism up to the age of 8, that is, it enrolls up to the age of 8. This is a small center. Moyadutuna is a small center with a single floor, 4 classrooms, and close to 30 students. Katerina says her dream is to open a kindergarten and a rehabilitation center in the same building. It would be wrong to give precise information about wages because they gave sessions according to the financial situation of the family. Unfortunately, there is no state support in Ukraine.
The institution has 5 therapists. These branches are 2 psychologists, 1 pedagogue, 1 logo-ped, and 1 pedagogue working with special children. It is an institution in its own right. It earns and progresses on its own without the support of the state, a foundation, or an association. They are practicing verbal behavior here. Unfortunately, the ABLLS curriculum does not exist, because it has not yet been translated into Russian.
SOLNICNIYSAVA
The clinic is run by Ms. Nataliya and Mr. Anatoli. It is called “Solnicniysava” and means “Sun Owl”. There is no one at the entrance, neither the secretary nor the receptionist. There are only Nataliya and Anatoli. This is a physical therapy and osteopathy center with only two people working.
This center, which is a small two-room apartment, has two physiotherapy beds in two rooms. The number of students is 8. Although there are more people with cerebral palsy, they also support people with autism. They take care of all of them individually for 2 hours. Nataliya and Anatoli are people who do their job with passion and sincerity. In a country where the government does not support autism, they do their job with passion.
There is also family education in this center. Verbal behavior implementation exists, but ABLLS is not. Pre-logo-ped training is also provided. They look at the physical condition and apply osteopathy. For example, children with a curved neck have a flat neck after osteopathy… At least 5 sessions of osteopathy are recommended in the center. They say that the child should be evaluated for osteopathy according to the bottom white part in the Shellenberger triangle. ABA is not liked very much in Kyiv, so floortime is used in this center.
Stem Cell Therapy for Autism Treatment
Even though the Ukraine government doesn’t support autism, there is a stem cell therapy center in Kyiv, Ukraine which is highly popular and works efficiently.
With this stem cell therapy applied, the progression of the disorder to more advanced stages is largely prevented in individuals with autism, and even improvements are observed in their current condition. After the treatment, improvement is observed at some points. For example, cognitive development, increase in learning capacity, being more efficient and diligent, remembering information in a shorter time, keeping the information in memory for a longer time, increase in environmental adaptation, digestive system functioning development, and immune system development is some of these.
Stem cells are natural repairers that form all tissues and organs in our body, have the ability to transform into cells they touch and divide unlimitedly, and can regenerate and heal our entire body. Therefore, they can be used as a treatment for autism spectrum disorder.
Although the success rate in the treatment of autism is directly proportional to the age of the individual, the duration of diagnosis, and the current condition of the individual, 85% success has been achieved in slowing, completely stopping, and regressing the progression of autism symptoms in 90% of the cases. The results obtained from the individual are evaluated according to the positive increase within 1 year. If positive results are started, the treatment is repeated and the success rate is increased.
The number of cells to be given is determined according to the age and weight of the individual with autism. The treatment is carried out using mesenchymal stem cells, that is, obtained from the individual’s own fat tissue or bone marrow, or using fetal stem cells. Which treatment to follow is decided according to the individual’s condition. It can be performed in 3 sessions at 45-day intervals or by application for 3 consecutive days. The treatment protocol is also completely adjusted according to the individual’s condition. Just as autism progresses differently in each individual, a different protocol is followed for each individual with autism.
The size of the stem cells given is small enough to pass through the brain cells. For this reason, the success rate of treatment increases significantly in individuals diagnosed with early autism. Studies have shown that very positive results can be achieved with stem cell therapy.
In 85% of individuals with autism who received this treatment, the progression of autism symptoms to more advanced stages was largely prevented and the existing bad situation was improved. The clearest and lasting effects of the applied treatments were achieved in the initial stage of the disorder when neurological and mental symptoms appear. In 90% of cases, results were obtained in this way. The results obtained from the autistic individual receiving treatment are evaluated according to the positive increase within 1 year. If positive results are started to observe, the treatment is repeated and the treatment success rate is increased.
Creativity for Kids Sensory Bin: Ocean and Sand – Fine Motor and Sensory Toys for Kids
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Fisher-Price Calming Vibrations Cuddle Soother, Musical Plush Toy for Infants and Toddlers
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QuTZ Flash Cards for Toddlers 2 3 4 5 6, Speech Therapy Toys Autism Toys, Educational Learning Toys for Toddlers, 224 Sight Words with Sound Effect
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