Under the leadership of First Lady Candida Montilla, the Dominican Republic has signed on as the newest partner in Autism Speaks’ Global Autism Public Health (GAPH) initiative.
“We will collaborate on an awareness campaign based on our Spanish-language materials, as well as on a prevalence study that will be among the first in Latin America,” says Michael Rosanoff, Autism Speaks director for public health research. Prevalence studies are a vital step in enabling governments to recognize and meet the need for autism services
The Dominican Republic will also join in the field trials of the Parent Skills Training program developed by Autism Speaks and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Earlier this month, Autism Speaks public health team members Michael Rosanoff and Lucia Murillo traveled to Santiago to attend the inauguration of the Dominican Republic’s new Integral Disabilities Care Center, the second of five centers commissioned by the First Lady to deliver services to children with developmental disabilities and provide training to parents and caregivers.
"The partnership with Autism Speaks GAPH Initiative will allow services to reach beyond the walls of these centers and deeper into the communities of the Dominican Republic,” Rosanoff says. “We are grateful to be working with the First Lady and the autism families of the Dominican Republic to help them reach their vision."
* Read more about Autism Speaks Global Autism Public Health initiative here.
* Read more about the Autism Speaks/WHO Parent Skills Training program here.
* Access Autism Speaks Spanish-language resources here.