Saskatchewan, Canada's Autism Wasteland, Is Exhibit 1 in the Case for a National Autism Strategy

More than three years after I described Saskatchewan as Canada's Autism Wasteland the label still accurately describes the state of autism services in the prairie province according to a FEAT opinion article in the Star-Phoenix. 

The Families for Effective Autism Treatment article argues that some money has been spent but it has been spent ineffectively and cautions anyone with an autistic child not to move to the "Land of the Living Skies" as Saskatchewan markets itself:

It sounds impressive when you hear about all the money being put into autism and programs the government is running, but ask families across Saskatchewan about how well this money is being spent. Ask our government for current and regular report cards. Ask what successes it has accomplished with these new programs and positions. Ask it to provide statistics on how many individuals receive adequate and professionally trained support.

Ultimately, individuals with autism continue to lose.

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Our children do not have time to waste while valuable dollars are spent creating expensive, ineffective services that aren't based on evidence and research. Our children need the help of proven therapies before they become another sad statistic lost in Autism's Wasteland.

Let your voice be heard for those who cannot. Saskatchewan can't afford to keep spending millions of dollars for ineffective programs that do not help individuals with autism. Let's use the money wisely and try not to re-create the wheel.

SASKFEAT is demanding immediate individualized funding, which is not income tested, until an acceptable and proven autism strategy is in place in Saskatchewan -- a strategy that addresses the lifetime needs of all individuals with ASD, and that is delivered across this province. Our families have been waiting and suffering long enough.

3 years after Saskatchewan started to fund autism services they still do not have an effective autism strategy in place. It is the autistic children of Saskatchewan who lost their 3 years of development potential, particularly during their early years between 2 and 5, who will have lost the most and who will pay the price for government and bureaucratic nonchalance or incompetence. 

Saskatchewan, Canada's Autism Wasteland, is also Exhibit 1 in the case for a National Autism Strategy.

No Autism Talk in Saskatchewan Election

Saskatchewan's Leader Post is covering autism this weekend, including profiling some autistic children and their families and notes that in Canada's Autism Wasteland the politicians are remaining silent on autism during the Saskatchewan election with none of the parties featuring an autism plank in their party platforms.

The lack of discussion of autism issues is featured in Autistic children get lost in election shuffle an article which also features SASKFEAT's Lisa Simmermon, herself the mother of an autistic child and a long time autism advocate. The provincial politicians in Saskatchewan are using their own delay and neglect of autistic children as an excuse for not being in a position to provide autism services, using the standard, "we have to consult the stakeholders", lines to explain why they are not in a position to start implementing autism specific programs.

We went through that song and dance years ago in New Brunswick when the Interdepartmental Committee on autism services took 18 months to report that there were few autism specific services in New Brunswick. That report then went unread by the lead minister on the Committee, then Health Minister Elvy Robichaud for almost a year.

In another flashback moment, a Kim Campbell moment, the Leader-Post reports that Lisa Simmermon was told by one provincial politician that "an election is not a time to comment on government services." Yeah, right.