Autism

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), About 1 in 68 American children are diagnosed with or are on the autism spectrum. A very careful research shows that this increase is only partly explained by improved diagnosis and awareness. Studies also show that autism is four to five times more common among boys than girls. An estimated 1 out of 42 boys and 1 in 189 girls are diagnosed with autism in the United States as research presently indicates.

There are many forms and approaches to treat autism. Autism is treatable! But cure is still unknown.

LCS provides several forms of treatments for families coping with autism. We start from a home visit from a well-trained professional referred from Regional Centers, Insurances or Privately Funding. A referral must be approved by your Regional Center or your Insurance Provider. Private –pay must be discussed with LCS before service starts.

It vastly depends on the assessment of your child’s functioning and needs. LCS eagerly embraces “each childs individual needs”. Please call our office to inquire about our enrollment procedure.

LCS is strongly committed to applying treatment interventions utilizing Evidence Based Practice. For example, ABA is a great example of Evidence Based Practice. ABA emcompasses all of the above listed Services Provided by LCS. If you have further questions, please call our office and we will promptly refer you to one of our Program Supervisors to answer all questions you may have pertaining to our approach to treat autism using the most current practices.

Applied behavior analysis - (ABA) is the process of applying interventions systematically that are based upon the principles of Behavior Analysis and learning theory and meant to improve socially significant behaviors in those with autism. Applied behavior analysis focuses on a range of principles that help explain how learning takes place. These principles include things like positive reinforcement. When a behavior is followed by a reward, the behavior is more likely to be repeated in the future because of the positive association. These various techniques can be used in structured situations, like in a classroom or "everyday" situations like family dinnertime, and involve one-on-one interaction between the behavior analyst, caregivers, and the child. The field of applied behavior analysis has developed a range of techniques for increasing useful behaviors while also reducing those that could cause harm or interfere with the learning process. This will, in turn, bring about a meaningful and positive change in behavior.

To clearly understand what Evidence-based practice is, we look for the integration of the best available research (many people with autism are treated and evaluated according to their progress reflected by the data) with clinical expertise in the context of patient characteristics, culture and preferences. This means that LCS applies behavioral interventions based on each person (family) according to what has been demonstrated to be effective among several people with special needs.

Yes. LCS provides ongoing referral to support groups dedicated to help parents with resources and understanding autism. Please refer to the above list of parent resources as they’re very helpful in providing answers to your questions regarding the latest research or most importantly what are activities and fun programs in your community that are “sensory friendly” for your child with special needs.

This is a question that many parents ask when starting an intervention. The answer is that most individuals with autism have difficulties developing language or using “language” with a clear purpose of communicating their needs, or appropriately socially interacting with peers and others. LCS strongly embraces language and communication according to each individual needs. The answer to this question varies according to each person.

This is also a question parents often ask. The outcome of behavioral interventions is “different” for each person as it is developed according to the individual needs of our clients. The progress of our treatments depends on the “team” which encompasses your family, our staff and all others involved in your child’s life. Autism is a disorder that affects many areas of functioning, and it can be a long and demanding treatment process. For more questions please contact the Parental resources that LCS provided you above.