Sharing the hope

PCDI trains therapists for autism intervention in Poland

By:Amy Rhett
 
   Autism is a severe developmental disability that recognizes no social, economic or cultural boundaries. It affects an estimated half million people in the U.S. alone. Black or white, rich or poor, in countries near and far, people with autism face great challenges: delayed language development, difficulty interacting with others, and repetitive patterns of behavior.
   The Princeton Child Development Institute on Cold Soil Road in Lawrence Township is known both here and abroad as one of the leading centers for autism research and treatment. Because of its international reputation, the institute attracts students and professionals from around the world. Interns from countries as diverse as Russia, Greece and Australia have trained in PCDI’s model treatment programs.
   Now, PCDI is training professionals from Poland who are working to build programs there for children with autism. Last spring, the executive director from the Synapsis Foundation in Warsaw spent three weeks visiting the institute and a teacher was here for a five-month internship. And this summer, two therapists, Iwona Ruta-Sominka and Anna Budzinska, from the Center for Autistic Children in Gdansk, completed a month-long internship.
   "When the center first opened 10 years ago, there was no help for people with autism in Poland," commented Ms. Budzinska. "There was nothing, just a big black hole." Rybicka Malgorzata, a native of Gdansk and mother of a son with autism, founded the enter in 1991 with a small group of parents. It is the first center in Poland dedicated exclusively to behavioral treatment.
   Part of the impetus to start the center came from Johan Stanghelle, a Norwegian who became friends with Ms. Malgorzata during his travels in Poland. When he learned that her son had autism, Mr. Stanghelle told Ms. Malgorzata about successful science-based intervention programs for people with autism in Norway. A group of therapists from the center, including Ms. Budzinska and Ms. Ruta-Sominka, visited Norway in 1991 for training. There they studied with professionals who had completed internships and residencies at PCDI.
   "PCDI has a long-standing relationship with behavior analysts in Norway," reported executive director Dr. Patricia J. Krantz. She and colleague Dr. Lynn E. McClannahan, also executive director, have lectured and consulted there since 1989. They gave the keynote address at the annual conference of the Norwegian Association for Behavior Analysis in 1991, and every year since, students from Akershus College in Oslo study at PCDI during three-month internships.
   Ms. Budzinska and Ms. Ruta-Sominka, who supervise the Gdansk Center’s programs, returned to Norway in 1994 and again in 1996 for additional training. Since then, two Norwegian behavior analysts visit the center twice a year for two-week consultations. At their recommendation, Ms. Budzinska and Ms. Ruta-Sominka applied for PCDI internships to study the institute’s innovative procedures first-hand.
   "When we first started the center, we used many different therapies, but they were terrible – none of them helped," explained Ms. Budzinska. "The only thing that worked was behavior analysis. When I saw the results, it was wonderful. It was such a great solution, especially for the older students whose difficult behaviors were so strong from years of having gone without effective treatment. Some were very aggressive – they pulled our hair, bit us, and kicked us. We felt so lucky to have this treatment, because you see the results very quickly. Within half a year, we were seeing great results, even with these more difficult children."
   "Coming to PCDI was a great opportunity for us," commented Ms. Ruta-Sominka. "It is a famous place. Drs. Krantz and McClannahan are very well-known. Their articles are required reading for anyone in this field. We feel very privileged."
   Ms. Ruta-Sominka and Ms. Budzinska spent a month at the institute this summer to study PCDI’s programs. The Barbara Piasecka Johnson Foundation provided a stipend for living expenses, a house for the women to stay, and the use of a car. They also paid for travel and room and board for the executive director and teacher from Synapsis Foundation while they were at PCDI.
   "We were happy to help," said Beata Piasecka the foundation’s vice president. "This is the kind of collaboration that we seek to support more in the future to help children with autism in Poland."
   "PCDI is a wonderful model for us," commented Ms. Ruta-Sominka. "It is so well-organized. Children here don’t lose any time. They are engaged from the beginning of the day to the end."
   Ms. Ruta-Sominka was particularly interested in PCDI’s two family-style group homes for adolescents and adults. Some students at the center in Poland will be turning 18, 19 and 20 this year. The government subsidizes education only until they are 21. "After that, there is nothing," said Ms. Ruta-Sominka. "There are some institutions, but they only ensure survival. I would love to start a group home like Family Focus. And also it would be great to have a program like PCDI’s Adult Life-Skills Program where older students learn skills to help them maintain employment and live at home."
   Though it doesn’t occupy much more space than its one-room beginning, the center in Poland now serves 40 children ages 2 to 20. They attend school for 4 to 6 hours a day where therapists work with them on a one-to-one basis. Therapists also work with parents at home to extend the number of hours children receive intervention. A videotape Ms. Budzinska and Ms. Ruta-Sominka brought with them showed a young boy dancing a traditional Polish folk dance with his peers in a regular kindergarten class. They noted other successes, including a boy who made the transition to regular school after four years in the center’s program. "A psychologist who saw him could not tell he had a previous diagnosis of autism," said Ms. Budzinska.
   Ms. Budzinska and Ms. Ruta-Sominka share great ambitions for the center’s future. "We would like someday to make our center famous," said Ms. Budzinska. "We want to operate on the highest level." Lech Walesa made Gdansk famous as the center of the Solidarity movement. Today, a dedicated group of therapists are hoping to make Gdansk famous as Poland’s finest center for autism intervention. With their vision and expert training, there is every chance they’ll succeed.
   The Barbara Piasecka Johnson Foundation is sponsoring "Art for Autism at Jasna Polana," an auction of art from the Barbara Piasecka Johnson collection. It will be held Friday, Sept. 22, at the Tournament Players Club at Jasna Polana. For more information, call (609) 688-1030.