Webinars

Description:

All autistic children receive care in community setting, and yet too much work has focused on care processes in tertiary settings. Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) Autism aims to change this through the evidence-based ECHO model, which aims to ensure that all children can access quality autism care, irrespective of geography. We have implemented the ECHO Autism model in Ontario for many years, and in this webinar, we will describe our plans to spread and scale this work across Canada. We will discuss how implementation science approaches are informing our work, helping us understand the perspectives of Canadian pediatricians and develop solutions that reflect best-practice standards as well as local realities. Importantly, we will share how lived experience councils are integrated into this project to ensure that the future of autism care in Canada respects the dignity of autistic people and responds to the diverse needs of Canadians. 

Learning Objectives
At the end of this webinar, participants will

1. Be aware of the need for high quality, community-based autism care.
2. Understand how implementation science approaches can help to spread and scale promising programs.
3. Be motivated to include the voices of those with lived-/living-experience to inform the design of meaningful future care practices.

Speakers:

Melanie Penner

Developmental Paediatrician; Senior Clinician Scientist - Autism Research Centre; Bloorview Children’s Hospital Foundation Chair in Developmental Paediatrics; Associate Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto; Associate Professor (status), Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto; Faculty, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto

Dr. Penner is a developmental pediatrician and a senior clinician scientist at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital in Toronto. She has done research and educational work to expand Ontario's diagnostic capacity for autism diagnoses in the community setting, decreasing wait times and facilitating earlier access to essential intervention programs. Dr. Penner leads the ECHO AuDIO study, which aims to spread and scale ECHO Autism across multiple sites in Canada.

Maddy Dever

Autistic Advocate & Co-Vice Chair - Autism Alliance of Canada

Maddy is an autistic adult of 5 children with three also on the autism spectrum (a tween, a teen and an adult) living in Carleton Place in rural Eastern Ontario. They advocate at both provincial and federal governments for inclusion and acceptance of autistic individuals and for autistic people to have their own voice. Maddy is a former member of the Ontario Autism Program Advisory Panel, and the Ontario Autism Program Implementation Working Group.

Maddy is the founder of Autistic Bridge, a self-advocacy group, a Director with Lanark Renfrew Health & Community Services, a Director with HAACO Ontario, and a leader in the National Disability Strategy movement to build a nation-wide coalition of disability organizations to advocate for meeting all needs of all disabilities at all ages. Maddy is also a member of Canadian Autism Spectrum Disorder Alliance (CASDA), where they are helping with aspects of developing a National Autism Strategy as well as helping at the annual CASDA Summit.

Maddy has also led workshops and panels on topics surrounding autism and education and has spoken about autism on many occasions including at the annual CASDA Summit in 2020 and in 2021, and the UN Human Rights Committee regarding the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Munira Khilji

Manager, Entry to School Program/Outreach – SAAAC Autism Centre

Munira Khilji is the Manager of the Entry to School and Case Management programs at the SAAAC Autism Centre. Her training as a healthcare professional, experiences as a parent of two and insight as an advocate for health equity in underserved communities deeply inform the initiatives Munira supports. Over the past ten years, Munira has championed the need for better support and services for families of children on the Autism spectrum. She started off with the community led Thorncliffe Collaborative for Muslim Families that enabled parents to engage in training opportunities that were accessible and culturally sensitive. She then garnered experience in cross-sectoral partnerships and integrated healthcare pathways through her work coordinating a school-based paediatric clinic for Health Access Thorncliffe Park that focuses on supporting children and youth who experience challenges with learning, growth, behaviour and development. Currently, Munira supports Ministry-led programming at the SAAAC Autism Centre.