At that time there was no intervention care in the north of Ireland. There is no cure for autism but as a parent you want to be able to look back and say you did the best that you could for your child.We spoke to specialists and were able to get a clinical psychologist to come over from America. We also engaged a consultant from London Early Autism Project who came over every two weeks working with Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA), the only treatment that has been proved as a way to improve the lives of kids with autism.
If I were to go back three or four years I think the biggest achievement we hoped for with Eoin was to get him toilet trained but now he is in P4 at the same school as his brothers. People would still know that he has issues but his progress has been outstanding. He is a living example of how intervention and ABA can work.
Brendan McGinn, Northern Ireland, 2006 Link Award Recipient
The Belfast Telegraph on Wednesday, November 7, 2007, featured the story of Brendan McGinn, the 2006 Link Award Recipient for for his dedicated efforts in fundraising for autism charity SPEAC (Special Provision for the Education of Autistic Children) which in the last three years has raised £500,000 and set up the first specialist school in Northern Ireland for children with autism. Mr. McGinn tells of being inspired in his efforts by his son autistic son Eoin who was helped dramatically with Applied Behavior Analysis. As Brendan McGinn stated: "'I was able to pay to help my autistic son. Now I want to support other parents'"
autism
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