David L. Wegner, 32°
3700 S. Spencer Blvd., Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57103-4707

Patience and repetition are the keys to treating autism.

Photo: Chandler Day receives therapy for autism from Jana Chadwick, a University of South Dakota graduate student, at the USD Scottish Rite Children's Clinic in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Of the 681 clients, mostly children, who received help from the Sioux Falls clinic in its fiscal year 2000, over a dozen had been previously diagnosed as autistic to some degree. One such child is 4-year-old Chandler Day. Chandler is the youngest of three children of Denise and James Day of Sioux Falls. His autism was diagnosed after medical tests excluded other possible physical explanations for his delayed communication development. The final diagnosis was made by a team of trained professionals commonly referred to as "the autistic team" within the Sioux Falls School District.

Chandler's parents had no prior experience with autism or other developmental delays with their two older children. Nine-year-old daughter, Chantel, is doing fine in school and in gymnastics. Six-year-old son, Fletch, is into karate. The Day family has several pets, including a dog, three cats, and two hamsters. Chandler acknowledges the animals but doesn't demonstrate special feelings or attachments to any of them. Computers, however, fascinate Chandler. He and his mom and dad spend a great deal of time together on their home computer.

According to literature distributed by the Autism Society of America, no one has yet discovered what causes autism. Autism knows no racial, ethnic, or social boundaries. Furthermore, the incidence of autism is unaffected by family income or lifestyle. Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life. It and associated behaviors have been estimated to occur in as many as one in 500 individuals, and its incidence is four times greater in boys than in girls. Although one-half million people in the United States are autistic or have some form of pervasive developmental disorder, few professionals in the medical, educational, or vocational fields are knowledgeable in how to help autistic individuals.

Autism impacts normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. The disorder makes it hard for its victims to communicate with others and relate to the outside world. In some cases, aggressive and/or self-injurious behavior may be present. Autistic children may exhibit repeated body movements, unusual responses to people, illogical attachments to objects, and resistance to changes in routines.

Chandler's father, James, states that he and his wife, Denise, are very lucky to be geographically situated near a clinic such as ours. Chandler was accepted into the clinic's program in June 2000. He comes for two one-hour therapy sessions per week. Additionally, mom and dad attend a Tuesday evening parents' class led by full-time clinic staff members Jane Clem and Angie Brown. James Day says the parents' class helps him and his wife focus on ways to improve communication with their son at home. He explains that Chandler often appears to believe he has communicated with mom or dad even though no words have been vocalized. Chandler then becomes frustrated when his parents do not respond to his perceived communication.

Like most children served by the clinic, Chandler is assigned to a University of South Dakota (USD) graduate student who sets goals, plans and conducts therapy activities, and evaluates the results of each session. USD faculty members supervise all activity. Chandler's current therapist, Jana Chadwick, is a graduate of Roosevelt High School in Sioux Falls and received her Bachelor Degree from USD in May 2000 with majors in both Communication Disorders and in Psychology. As a graduate student, she is emphasizing Speech and Language Pathology as she works towards a Master's Degree in Communication Disorders.

This reporter was privileged to observe one of Chandler's therapy sessions. I was situated in a small observation room separated from the therapy room by a one-way mirror. Jana had several activities listed on the wall-mounted schedule board. These included picture book object identification, recognition of alphabetic letters, playing with plastic blocks, using a computer to identify objects and words, using crayons to color in objects as they are identified, and returning to the computer for other activities involving alphabetic letters and objects.

Much of the therapy was directed towards encouraging Chandler to put two words together and to follow directions. Jana encouraged responses from him, a difficult task since autistic children tend to tune other people out. Also, she tried to reduce Chandler's risk of hurting himself by prohibiting him from climbing up on the sides of his chair or onto any other climbable object. Her skill as a graduate clinician was very evident. She was constantly focused and ever mindful of the objectives of the session. With a firm, no-nonsense voice, she responded rapidly to everything the child said or did, both good and bad. Typical responses were: "Good job, Chandler!" "Very good!" "We have to sit on our bottom now." (Chandler was trying to stand on the side of his chair) "We have to turn around." "Thank you!" "It's Chandler's turn now." "Oh, are you in Jana's chair? This is Chandler's chair over here." "We need to sit up now." "Let's color the bear." "Let's look at what Jana is writing. That's Chandler's name." "Okay, its time to check the computer. Now we can play on the computer."

Chandler's father maintains that the boy's speech has improved three-fold since his first visits to the clinic. The goal is for Chandler to enter a normal kindergarten class at age seven. With skillful evaluation and treatment, miracles are happening in our South Dakota clinics in Sioux Fall, Vermillion, and Rapid City. The Aberdeen area is in desperate need of a clinic, but additional funds need to be raised before a clinic can become a reality at that location. Scottish Rite members and friends can help make this happen through gifts and bequests.

The above article is reprinted with permission from the Double Eagle News (March 2001),
Sioux Falls, S.D.

David L. Wegner recently served in South Dakota's Grand Lodge Office for several years as Administrative Assistant. Until October 2000, he was Editor of South Dakota's Masonic Messenger, and in January 2001 he was appointed Editor of the Double Eagle News published by the Valley of Sioux Falls. Bro. Dave was raised a Master Mason in Unity Lodge No. 130, Sioux Falls, in 1990 and took his Scottish Rite Degrees the same year.