Families of children awaiting an autism assessment are being invited to update sessions to find out more about the service and help shape its future.
The event, which is being organised by the Isle of Wight NHS Clinical Commissioning Group, will give families the opportunity to hear from health, education, special educational needs, speech and language therapists and commissioners.
As well as being provided an update on the service, families will also be invited to volunteer and get involved in how the autism service is provided going forward.
Dr Sarah Westmore, clinical lead for mental health for the CCG, said:
“Families and children have always been at the heart of any service we commission and it’s important their experience and insight helps us shape the service in the future.
“While we have worked hard to reduce the backlog of families waiting for an assessment, we know the rate of new referrals coming in remain high.
“Our priority remains to ensure the service we set up is as safe and effective as possible.
“The aim of the engagement event is to give families an update on where things stand at the moment, how we want to move forward, and also the chance to ask questions to a host of specialists who will be there.
Article continues below this advertisement “We would encourage as many families as possible to attend.”
Originally there were 250 children waiting to be seen when the former ADRC service stopped running. All of these children have now been seen.
The CCG commissioned Psicon Ltd and Healios Ltd to help with this work, and they will continue to support families on the Island until a permanent service is put in place.
Dr Westmore added:
“We know families are still anxious about the service going forward and so we want to put minds at rest that Psicon and Healios will continue with assessments so there will be no gap in services.
“We are working closely with Barnados, who offer parenting support for families. Previously parents would have needed a diagnosis to access this service; however we have now removed this barrier so the family of any child showing traits of autism can find help.”
The update event takes place on Monday 1st July 2019 at the Riverside Centre, in Newport. 3 sessions are being run – 10:00 to midday, 13:00 to 15:00 and 17:00 to 19:00.
To book into a session email [email protected] giving your name and chosen time slot.
