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Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
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Moscow helps people with autism spectrum disorder throughout their entire lives: from early diagnosis to rehabilitation. City institutions and non-profit organizations (NPOs) of the capital offer various forms of care depending on the age, interests, and capabilities of each Muscovite. On the World Autism Awareness DayDepartment of Labor and Social Protection of the Populationtells how Moscow helps special city residents develop communication, social, and everyday skills.
Communication and work with the family
The main task of specialists at all stages of rehabilitation is to teach the child to interact with the world, communicate with other people, and master everyday skills. Almost always, work begins with building communication within the family. Parents do not know how to talk with their child, which methods to use, so specialists teach alternative communication — communication without words. For requests, answers, and other replies, illustrated cards, special sign systems, gestures, and colored tags are used.Thanks to mastering communication skills, parents raising children with autism begin to see the world through their children’s eyes and discover new facets of their personalities.
Many children with autism spectrum disorder exhibit pronounced individual abilities that can become the foundation for success in the future. They have excellent mathematical memory, show a propensity for memorizing numbers, facts, sequences. Others have developed visual perception — visual materials, diagrams, tables, cards are perceived by such children better than verbal instructions. There are also those who show a tendency towards detail — attention to elements can be a strong point when accuracy and precision are required.Some children exhibit pronounced abilities in music, drawing, and other creative fields. Every child with autism spectrum disorder is unique. Even when it comes to features of education and rehabilitation strategies, these should be selected individually. “Supporting strengths and creating a comfortable environment is the key to successful adaptation and development,” said the deputy director of the Troitsk rehabilitation and educational center “Solnyshko,” Alexander Sklyar.
The path to autonomy
Victoria is the mother of twin brothers Andrey and Sergey. Her sons are a vivid example of how proper care, concern, and love can unlock the potential of children with developmental features.
Until the ninth grade, boys were educated at the Troitsky Rehabilitation and Educational Center “Solnyshko” of the Capital Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Population. There they mastered an adapted general education program and underwent comprehensive rehabilitation: they worked with a speech therapist, a defectologist, and a psychologist.
Victoria warmly and joyfully tells how the “Solnyshko” center became a place for her family where children gained self-confidence, learned to interact with the surrounding world, and took important steps towards independent life. Today, the boys can prepare breakfast, pack backpacks, or put things in their places. These skills are the result of many years of systematic work with the support of a team of specialists. The twins decided on their future profession and enrolled in college.
From the first steps to the favorite business
Non-profit organizations of the capital complement and expand the city support system with unique projects. Each initiative of the winners of the “Moscow — Kind City” grant competition is aimed at solving important tasks — from rehabilitation to education and employment.
The Center for Assistance to People with Disabilities “Mentor” is developing the project “Complex+: Constructing Progress” for 20 children with autism. Various types of corrective interventions are used in the sessions, which complement each other: defectological, speech therapy, neuro-correctional, and physical. Instead of a standard academic hour, educators use short periods of maximum involvement, switching the children to a different type of workload to avoid overfatigue.
“Often specialists work in isolation, so even relevant programs for special children can slow down the pace of their development. ‘KompleksUm’ solves this problem: our team acts in coordination within the framework of a single lesson. This excludes contradictions in the methodology and allows the time spent on lessons with children with autism to be used as effectively as possible. The project is also important for parents: when a team of professionals works with a child, the level of anxiety decreases. After completing the course, each family receives a report and a program for further development,” said Ekaterina Kuznetsova, director of the ‘Mentor’ center.
As people with official diagnoses grow up, they encounter new difficulties. The expert-methodological center “Special Childhood”, the winner of the grant competition “Moscow — a kind city”, is implementing the initiative “Your Key” for adolescents and young people with autism spectrum disorder.
One of the project participants, 17-year-old Gleb, experienced difficulties in communication and quickly got tired in company. For him, it was important not only to acquire self-care skills but also to learn how to control emotions and consider the interests of the interlocutor. During the sessions, the young man mastered making shopping lists, planning expenses, rules of payment for purchases, and polite communication with others.
After socialization and everyday adaptation, there is another important life stage — mastering a profession. The charitable foundation “Art to Be Near” offers a comprehensive system of social and labor adaptation “I’m Employed” for 70 people with autism. Inclusive workshops work for teenagers, and adults receive training at a specialized employment center.
Georgiy, one of the participants of the “I’m Busy” project, learned to sew under the guidance of mentors. The young man mastered simple stitches, practiced on small items, and now works on a patchwork quilt: selecting fabrics, combining colors, and processing them on the machine. In classes, Georgiy not only develops motor skills and attention but also expresses himself through creativity, gaining confidence in himself and his abilities.
The capital’s social protection system includes eight rehabilitation-educational and 10 rehabilitation centers where children and adults with disabilities undergo comprehensive rehabilitation. The institutions successfully apply domestic developments to assist people with health conditions and those who have suffered severe injuries.
Program“Moscow is a kind city”Implemented in the capital since 2019. This is an effective partnership model between the city and the charitable sector to provide targeted assistance to each person. One of its key projects is a grant competition for socially oriented NGOs. Over seven years, 738 projects received funding totaling 2.8 billion rubles.
As noted by Sergey Sobyanin inDevelopment strategies of the social protection system of Moscow until 2030, the synergy of the work of city services and NGOs allows providing support to the maximum number of residents in need.
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