THE Intervention Center for Autism and Related Exceptionalities (iCare) was recently launched in Cagayan de Oro City.
A press release that recently detailed its launching was given to me by Atty. Isa Echem Tangonan. She happens to be part owner of iCare and even if I'm here at North Carolina, I am interested to write about it.
Atty. Tangonan happens to be the daughter of Zoraida Echem, a townmate in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental. Zoraida Echem's maternal grandmother is Eulogia P. Martinez whom I fondly called Tiay.
iCare is owned and operated by Atty. Isa Echem-Tangonan and her husband as their contribution to their community. We do this not primarily for profit, but to offer quality service of early intervention, Atty. Tangonan said.
Autism and related exceptionalities in a child is something hard to discuss. It struck a chord in me. It's not easy to hear news that your child has autism and you would realize that your life would be utterly different than what is expected.
Years ago, I would always see to it that I would invite teachers, parents and the special students of City Central School to my radio and TV public affairs program.
They would discuss different Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Pervasive Developmental Orders (PDO), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders (ADHD), Down syndrome, Learning Disabilities and other related conditions.
That was 16 years ago when many are unfamiliar with the disorders I've mentioned. It became a nightmare to some families when their children are autistic and they would deal with it like it was something from outer space.
Resources, facilities and expertise weren't as adequate as they are now. In Cagayan de Oro, there are private institutions like iCare that offers therapy to autistic and special children.
But it is iCare that's the first therapy center for special children in Cagayan de Oro that uses scientific procedures based on the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) method as the foundation of intervention.
Excerpt from:
Palmes-Dennis: Effective autism care in Cagayan de Oro