In a mission to bring about change with increased instance of autism diagnosed among children, two renowned experts in Autism from the United States (Texas), Dr. Steve Gutstein and Dr. Rachelle Sheely, had conducted a two-day seminar at MCA Club in Bandra-Kurla Complex on Relation Development Intervention (RDI) organized by Support for Autistic Individuals (SAI).
This one of a kind seminar threw light on the parent-based treatment programme that will help parents, teachers and any individual who comes in contact with children with autism to establish give and take relationships. The programme is based on the latest scientific research about autism the brain and development psychology. RDI is one of the latest developments in the field of autism and is based on solid scientific work.
Autism is a range of neuro-development disorders that is characterized by social impairment, communication difficulties and repetitive behaviour.
“Since the past few years, a few Indian parents have been faithfully trudging to foreign countries for guidance and with a single-point mission: to pick up the nuances of relationship development intervention (RDI). They would spend months as well as lakhs of rupees to learn RDI — to help their autistic child pick up social skills. With newer research suggesting successful treatment, this seminar comes at a time which will teach a different approach in teaching and managing children with autism”. Says Kamini Lakhani, as the parent of a 20-year-old autistic son, the brain child & organizer of the RDI seminar and director of the school, Support for Autistic Individuals (SAI).
"In his welcome address, according to the Dr Gutstein, considering that the US-based National Institutes of Health recently stated that one in every 150 children suffers from autism, it is being viewed as one of the biggest epidemics of modern times; autistic individuals have every hope of living a normal, fulfilling life. One can notice a paradigm shift in children using RDI.”
“Autism mainly occurs between zero to two years of age. In this time, there may have been moments when emotional communication between the parents and the child snapped,” says Dr Shelly addressing the seminar. For instance, most children look at their parents for cues when confronted with a stranger or a difficult situation. This doesn’t happen in children with autism. RDI helps in establishing a social referencing system.
The seminar concluded with an open discussion on how RDI works to bridge such social emotional gaps between parent and child. It was attended by a large number of invited teachers, parents of children with autism, professionals among others.