SUNGAI BULOH: Like most parents with autistic children, Sumaiyah Ahmad Suhaimi, has spared no effort to get the best care and education for her child.
Her 7-year-old son, Ariq Ziqri Abdul Razak, who is on the autism spectrum, goes to school in the morning and continues with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) therapy in Selayang in the afternoon.
Despite living in Sungai Buloh, Sumaiyah chooses to send her son to the centre in Selayang. Although it costs RM700 a month, she said it was still cheaper than many similar centres in Sungai Buloh.
As such, the pledge by Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Khairy Jamaluddin, who is caretaker health minister, that he would set up two education centres for autistic and special needs children in the constituency if he wins in the 15th General Election (GE15), resonated with her.
"Sungai Buloh has several centres offering such therapies for ASD children, but the centre in Selayang is the most affordable.
"Therefore, I applaud the plan to open more education centres in Sungai Buloh as the need for it is increasing with more parents now aware of the importance of therapy for their children," she said.
She was speaking to the New Straits Times at the launch of the Kami Prihatin programme, organised by Yayasan Prihatin Nasional (Prihatin) held at Sekolah Kebangsaan Sungai Buloh (SKSB) here yesterday.
Held in conjunction with Jelajah Pendidikan Keluarga Malaysia 2022, the programme is an initiative to help students, especially from the low-income families (B40) and asnaf (underprivileged) group.
The event saw a total of 100 autism and special needs children from Program Pendidikan Khas Integrasi SKSB receiving eye examinations and spectacles through a collaboration with Bolton Optical Group Sdn Bhd.
The children also received cash aid contributions as well as learning equipment.
Present were Prihatin chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Aizuddin Ghazali and Khairy's wife, Nori Abdullah.
Sharing her experience raising a child with ASD, Nori said it was important to support one's child's emotions by identifying them.
"These special children are not a burden on their parent. These children are the ones who bear the burden and it is on us to help lighten their loads," she said.
Nori said apart from family members, educators also played a crucial role in a child's development, which was why it was crucial to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment.
"It is important to also self-check your emotions as parents and educators when dealing with these special children."
Meanwhile, Amirullah Khalid, whose son suffers from a rare disorder known as Hypomyelination with atrophy of the basal ganglia and cerebellum, or H-ABC, said such centres would help parents tremendously.
His son, Ahmad Zharif Darwish, 9, is the only known H-ABC sufferer in Malaysia.
Amirullah, 38, said his son was born normal, but was diagnosed when he was 3 years old after suffering from high fever, which permanently damaged his nervous system.
"He could walk when he was 2, but his physical abilities deteriorated after being diagnosed with the disease," said Amirullah.
He said with increased public awareness on special needs cases, including autism, more such education and care centres were needed.
"However, not everyone can afford special needs therapy."
One of the teachers at SKSB, Samrah Shamsuddin, said the government had helped in providing educational tools for the school since the establishment of the special education programme in 1996.
"Currently we offer 12 classes and seven pre-education classes for children under 7, handled by 21 teachers who are all well-trained and have undergone Special Needs Education courses," she said.
She added that there had been an increase in students following greater awareness of autism nationwide.
The 55-year-old, who has almost 15 years experience in teaching special needs children, said handling the children required patience and they were trained to accept unconditionally.
Norazlina Jusin, 47, a fellow teacher at the school, said one of the most important keys to dealing with the children was to communicate closely with the parents.
"Parental cooperation is important to provide updates on their child's development."
AUTISM FAST FACTS
ACCORDING to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, the incidence of autism stands at 1 per 68 children. That would mean that approximately 9,000 children in Malaysia are born with autism every year.
INCREASED awareness has helped autistic children have access to equal education similar to a normal child.
BRINGING awareness to children on the autism spectrum also entails getting them diagnosed early, getting them treatments, and providing them with positive behavioural support.
BEHAVIOURAL indicators of autism in young children include communication barriers, lack of responses to sensory stimuli, developmental discrepancies and many more.
Information taken from nasom.org.my.