Bandar Seri Begawan - Deputy Minister of Health, Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Lela Diraja Dato Paduka Hj Hazair Hj Abdullah, yesterday presented licences and certificates to the 20 participants who completed their three-day "Early Bird Programme for Autism".

Organised for the first time ever by the Children Development Centre, the presentation took place during the closing ceremony of the programme at the Health Promotion Centre in Berakas.

In a speech by a representative of the participants, she said during the course, they were introduced to the framework of the Early Bird training programme and watched a lot of videos showing experiences of parents with autistic children, videos on autism and also role playing.

A lot of aspects were covered during the course such as the background of parenthood, areas of communication, how to impart knowledge, how to train parents to play with their kids, how to manage their behaviour, how to plan things ahead and the why's and how's of specific characteristics of children involved in autism.

The programme also allows participants to establish a strong sense of teamwork, and realise that despite coming from different backgrounds, parents with autistic children share the same goals. Touching on the course, she commented that it was well planned and there is so much that needs to be shared with parents and despite the fact that autism cannot be cured, there is so much that can still be done.

One of the strategies that the Early Bird programme makes use of in addressing the issues of communication with children with autism is the picture exchange communication system. The three-day course saw the participation of health and medical officers from the Ministry of Health as well as personnel from CDC.

The course was facilitated by invited speakers from the UK, autism specialists, Anne Marie Harrison and Johannah Smyth. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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