AGXStarseed
Well-Known Member
(Not written by me)
Innisfil mom Theresa Sanders is petitioning the province for more ongoing support for families dealing with children with disabilities, like her 14-year-old daughter Jessica. - Janis Ramsay/Metroland
Innisfil mom Theresa Sanders is getting vocal about what she calls an unfair funding system the government is creating around children with disabilities.
Sanders said because her daughter isn’t on the autism spectrum, she won’t get the same funding options as children who are.
Sanders’s daughter Jessica and twin brother Alex are 14. They were born prematurely at 37 weeks.
Soon after birth, Jessica experienced significant health complications.
“We knew she was delayed from early on, and we did receive early intervention services,” Sanders said.
At the age of two, Jessica became ill and ongoing seizures followed, leaving her permanently intellectually and physically disabled.
She started taking multiple prescriptions and, at three, Jessica started consultation therapy with the Children’s Treatment Network of Simcoe-York.
When she entered school, the family was told untrained educational assistants would provide therapy, Sanders said.
“Jessica never qualified to receive proper speech language therapy as she is mostly nonverbal, forcing us to rely solely on private therapy, which we still access to this day.”
Before school, Jessica does speech and physiotherapy to keep her progressing, and pool therapy to make sure her muscles stay strong.
Funding has dwindled over the years, leaving the family struggling to pay bills and continue therapy.
But Sanders is looking to the future and what will happen once Jessica leaves high school at 21 and her funding disappears completely.
“We want her to have a full life, whatever that happens to be. I don’t want anyone to give up on her,” she said.
Now that the province is stepping up funding for children with autism, it’s making Sanders speak up once again.
In May 2017, Children and Youth Services Minister Michael Coteau announced a direct funding option for families with a new Ontario Autism Program.
And funding for the Special Needs Strategy would hire staff to identify special needs earlier.
“All of that money into autism programs is discrimination,” Sanders said. “He knows about the issues and he’s aware of the challenges we face.”
Sanders doesn’t begrudge families with autism from getting funding, but believes it should be a more even playing field.
“I’ve been able to advocate for Jessica and at times, they’ve cut off services. I used to volunteer with the Children’s Treatment Network, which is one reason I have a relationship with them. Jessica has made me a better advocate for her, but the autism community is a force.”
To make it fair, give the money directly to families who qualify, allowing them to find their own therapists, she wrote in a letter to Coteau, Community and Social Services Minister Helena Jaczek, and Health Minister Eric Hoskins.
"Personally, we already have (therapists) and would gladly welcome your support rather than using our dwindling savings, our retirement money, our credit cards and lines of credits, leveraging our homes, our inheritances from older family who have witnessed first- hand our ongoing financial struggles."
And rather than investing in people to diagnose special needs earlier, hire more front-line staff, she added.
"Why bother identifying them if you can’t help them?"
Source: Innisfil mom says autism funding unfair
Innisfil mom Theresa Sanders is petitioning the province for more ongoing support for families dealing with children with disabilities, like her 14-year-old daughter Jessica. - Janis Ramsay/Metroland
Innisfil mom Theresa Sanders is getting vocal about what she calls an unfair funding system the government is creating around children with disabilities.
Sanders said because her daughter isn’t on the autism spectrum, she won’t get the same funding options as children who are.
Sanders’s daughter Jessica and twin brother Alex are 14. They were born prematurely at 37 weeks.
Soon after birth, Jessica experienced significant health complications.
“We knew she was delayed from early on, and we did receive early intervention services,” Sanders said.
At the age of two, Jessica became ill and ongoing seizures followed, leaving her permanently intellectually and physically disabled.
She started taking multiple prescriptions and, at three, Jessica started consultation therapy with the Children’s Treatment Network of Simcoe-York.
When she entered school, the family was told untrained educational assistants would provide therapy, Sanders said.
“Jessica never qualified to receive proper speech language therapy as she is mostly nonverbal, forcing us to rely solely on private therapy, which we still access to this day.”
Before school, Jessica does speech and physiotherapy to keep her progressing, and pool therapy to make sure her muscles stay strong.
Funding has dwindled over the years, leaving the family struggling to pay bills and continue therapy.
But Sanders is looking to the future and what will happen once Jessica leaves high school at 21 and her funding disappears completely.
“We want her to have a full life, whatever that happens to be. I don’t want anyone to give up on her,” she said.
Now that the province is stepping up funding for children with autism, it’s making Sanders speak up once again.
In May 2017, Children and Youth Services Minister Michael Coteau announced a direct funding option for families with a new Ontario Autism Program.
And funding for the Special Needs Strategy would hire staff to identify special needs earlier.
“All of that money into autism programs is discrimination,” Sanders said. “He knows about the issues and he’s aware of the challenges we face.”
Sanders doesn’t begrudge families with autism from getting funding, but believes it should be a more even playing field.
“I’ve been able to advocate for Jessica and at times, they’ve cut off services. I used to volunteer with the Children’s Treatment Network, which is one reason I have a relationship with them. Jessica has made me a better advocate for her, but the autism community is a force.”
To make it fair, give the money directly to families who qualify, allowing them to find their own therapists, she wrote in a letter to Coteau, Community and Social Services Minister Helena Jaczek, and Health Minister Eric Hoskins.
"Personally, we already have (therapists) and would gladly welcome your support rather than using our dwindling savings, our retirement money, our credit cards and lines of credits, leveraging our homes, our inheritances from older family who have witnessed first- hand our ongoing financial struggles."
And rather than investing in people to diagnose special needs earlier, hire more front-line staff, she added.
"Why bother identifying them if you can’t help them?"
Source: Innisfil mom says autism funding unfair
