RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
A team from Joint Base San Antonio will take part in a two-mile walk Saturday morning at San Antonio's AT&T Center Sombrilla that will raise awareness of a developmental disability that affects an estimated one in 110 children in the United States.
A month-long display at Randolph Elementary School is educating students about the disorder and a book reading by two parents planned for Tuesday will help students better understand the disability and accept people who are different.
April is Autism Awareness Month, an observance that focuses on the autism spectrum disorders that affect a child's behavior, social and communication skills. According to the Autism Society of America, autism typically appears during the first three years of life and is defined by a certain set of behaviors such as lack of delay in spoken language, repetitive use of language and/or motor mechanisms, little or no eye contact, lack of spontaneous or make-believe play, lack of interest in peer relationships and persistent fixation on parts of objects.
The disabilities, which include autistic disorder, Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified, are lifelong conditions, though children diagnosed with one of the disorders can progress developmentally and learn new skills.
Autism is so prevalent that it is one of the most common diagnoses of children whose families are enrolled in the Air Force's Exceptional Family Member Program, which supports active-duty special needs families. The program's goal is to prevent active-duty assignment failures due to lack of resources for special needs family members.
"The majority of the parents I see have children with autism," said Tracy Bramlett, 902nd Force Support Squadron Exceptional Family Member Program coordinator.
Ms. Bramlett, who will be part of the JBSA team that is signed up for the seventh annual Walk for Autism San Antonio, said she fills the EFMP family support function, providing families with information and the names of community resources as well as organizing support groups and events that educate and entertain special needs families.
"Some military members think being in the EFMP is a stigma, that it will hinder them in their assignments," she said. "That's not the case. We ensure special-needs family members will have the resources they need because we don't want anything to prevent military members from accomplishing their mission."
Ms. Bramlett said she also talks to parents who are not yet in the EFMP but express concern their children are not reaching developmental milestones, one of the signs of autism. She said parents should talk to their primary care provider if they suspect their child is autistic because early intervention is important in the treatment of the disorder.
"I've had parents say there's something there and they want to get their child assessed," she said.
Ms. Bramlett said the San Antonio area has a lot to offer for active-duty families with autistic children because of ample resources in the community; special education services provided on the Randolph Field Independent School District campuses, where there are 14 students identified as autistic; and the oversight of the Randolph Medical Clinic, which has its own special needs advocate, clinical nurse Denise Ulrich.
Maj. Barbara Dauerty, a physician assistant and special needs coordinator at the clinic, said one of her roles is to make sure special needs families are enrolled in the EFMP.
"When people PCS in, they fill out a form and identify special needs family members," she said. "I make sure they touch base with Denise and Tracy so they will know there are resources available in the community. I also make sure the providers on base know about the families. What really has to happen is to coordinate the provider, schools and specialty disciplines so families are getting the help they need."
Major Dauerty said Ms. Ulrich and Ms. Bramlett are leading an effort to bring more services to autistic family members at Randolph.
"There's no way at the present time to get the services in one place, but soon we hope to bring speech, occupational and physical therapy services all under one roof," she said.
Major Dauerty said having a special needs advocate is an example of the military's improved response to families with members who have autism or other disabilities.
"That's the beauty of having a special needs program," she said. "Somebody has overview, so they have a better idea of what's going on."
For more information or to register for the seventh annual Walk for Autism San Antonio, visit walkforautismsa.com. To speak to the Randolph Pediatric Clinic special needs advocate, call 652-2543.