Tag Archives: fire department

Why Emergency Responder Education Part II – Behaviors

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Yesterday I participated in a beautiful 9/11 memorial service and emergency preparedness festival. I am still brought to tears when the events of that horrific day are described by anyone, especially those who serve in public safety. I am honored to be a part of a huge calling to encourage citizens to get involved and help their families, neighbors, and community be prepared for disasters of all kinds. To learn more about how you can be involved in your community, go to the Citizen Corps website.

Common behaviors of children with Autism and how to handle them

As promised, here is part two of why I am passionate about training and educating Emergency Responders about Autism. Here is a snapshot of behaviors that are highly likely to be misinterpreted by police officers, EMTs, or firefighters responding to an emergency call:

Self-stimulatory (stimming)

  • Hand flapping
  • Finger play
  • Head tapping
  • Spinning
  • Transfixing on spinning or moving objects

Unless the child is injuring himself or others, self-stimulatory behaviors should not be stopped. This is a comfort for the child.

Self-injurious

  • Head banging
  • Biting self
  • Scratching
  • Eye gouging

This behavior should be stopped immediately.

Aggressive behavior is not intentional - handle with care

  • Head butting
  • Biting
  • Punching
  • Crashing into or pushing others

Aggressive behavior is usually caused by over-stimulation, sensory-seeking, fear, pain, surprise, or lack of communication.  Remember this child does not mean to hurt you. Restrain if needed, as calmly and controlled as possible.

Insensitivity to pain

  • May be unaware of pain
  • May under-react: major physical trauma may go unnoticed
  • May over-react: minor scrapes and cuts could be perceived as major

Check thoroughly for injuries; do not rely on communication or reaction from the child.

Aversion to touch

  • Light touches (hand on shoulder, back rubbing) may be painful

Although they may crave deep compression and tight squeezes, light touch is often over-magnified and can cause pain and discomfort. Do not approach the child from behind if possible; children with Autism do not like surprises.

Avoiding eye contact

  • May look at you through peripheral glance
  • May look at you through an object or spread fingers

Do not mistake lack of eye contact for suspicion of guilt, avoidance, lack of respect, or belligerence.  Try to get eye contact if you can, but do not force it.

Lack of response

  • May only respond to visual cues

Emergency responders should consider carrying sets of visual communication cards, or familiarizing themselves with basic sign language.

Repetitive motion

  • May repeatedly fidget with an item
  • May fixate on spinning or lighted objects
  • May appear to be in a trance

Do not mistake for drug use, mental illness, or lack of respect for authority.

Extreme hyperactivity or inactivity

  • Prone to running or bolting away suddenly

    Children with Autism are prone to running away - especially if frightened or confused

  • May rapidly pace back and forth
  • May appear out of control (like the Tasmanian Devil!)
  • May go limp at touch or fold into self

Redirection is the best way to diffuse hyperactivity or passivity. Try asking what the child’s favorite show, game, or movie is.  Asking mathematical questions or giving the child a “job” to will reel in their focus.

Inappropriate emotional response

  • May laugh or cry for no reason
  • May laugh at a very serious situation, or in response to feeling or causing pain
  • May show extreme distress over minor incidents

This is very hard for us to understand. Laughter in response to a serious question or accusation does not imply guilt or disrespect. It is simply a defense mechanism for the child.

Echoing speech or movement

  • May repeat everything you say
  • May mimic your tone and gestures
  • May speak in robotic tone

Do not mistake this for “being a wise guy”, or lack of respect.

Non-verbal and non-responsive to verbal cues

  • Limited or no speech
  • May appear deaf
  • May communicate with sign language, by pointing, or using picture cards

Do not mistake for lack of interest or ignorance. Try to use common gestures to get through to the child. Be patient!

Attachment

  • May hold unusual items
  • May be extremely agitated or distressed if item cannot be located

While seeming unimportant or silly to us, comfort items are critically important to children with Autism. It may be a rock, a paper clip, fabric, shoelace, or anything. Do not take away the item from the child. Try to find the item if the child loses it.

Need for routine and order

  • Obsessed about routines
  • Literal about things like time and location (“It’s not 8:30, it’s 8:28!”)
  • May repeatedly seek places or activities from the child’s normal routine

Children with Autism look to bring order to a world that’s out of order to them. Noise, lights, smells, and other sensory challenges are coming at them all the time. This is their norm.

Oblivious to others’ emotions

  • Typically do not understand facial expressions
  • Will not understand sarcasm, idioms, exaggerations, or jokes
  • May not understand they are a victim of a crime
  • May be hard to diffuse situation with normal socialization techniques (e.g., “How would YOU feel if…”)

Don’t assume that these children “should know better”, or that a simple unapproving look will get through to them. They rarely know what they did wrong and need it explained in a way they understand.

Children may respond to loud or confusing noises by screaming to drown it out

Inappropriate response to noise

  • Hyper sensitive: May cover ears with hands or try to break object that is causing discomfort
  • Hypo sensitive: May appear deaf or not respond to verbal commands

Each child on the Spectrum presents different variations of sensory issues – no two are alike! They can even be hyper and hypo sensitive to the same thing!

No fear of danger

  • May run into traffic
  • May bolt suddenly into the street or a hazardous environment
  • May willingly go with strangers
  • Will not recognize dangerous situations
  • May not understand fire, heat, sharp objects, or other hazardous items

While often possessing extraordinary academic abilities, many children with Autism do not recognize danger, exhibit no fear, are prone to wandering, and miss basic cause and effect concepts (“If I touch this, I will get burned”). Never leave unsupervised at the scene of an accident, fire, disaster, or crime.

A Valiant Effort + Failure = Great New Programs

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So I passed the Firefighter written exam with flying colors – very exciting!  I come from a family of firefighters, paramedics, and police officers, and this opportunity made me light up with passion.  I helped start our county’s Citizen Volunteer programs with Fire Rescue four years ago and have been chomping at the bit ever since to get on board.

I then mentally and physically prepared for the Physical Ability Test (PAT). At 39 years young, 5’2″, and <110 lbs, I knew it was a stretch for me to pass this test but I was ready. I’ve been working out intensely six days a week for over three years. Oh, I knew it would be hard… but I honestly thought I had it in the bag.

I did not pass the PAT. You know what? I gave it my all. I didn’t walk away, didn’t give up, and ran the course until I had nothing left in me. I tried! I am so grateful for the chance to go for it.

Not to play the classic “Fox and the Grapes” theme, but here are some great reasons why I’m a bit relieved to have this behind me. These are not insurmountable challenges that I couldn’t have found solutions for with some crafty brainstorming, but nonetheless I am looking at realistic facts:

I am a single mom with a special needs child. 24-hour shifts would require very creative solutions! Childcare, school special events, and holidays all had potential to fall on my shifts. And they would! Also, who would the school call for a sick child? Could I leave the fireground to pick up a child having a sensory meltdown? I don’t think so!

Serving the Autism Community. The academy takes 100% of your time, energy, efforts, and dedication, as it should. Yet I recognize a great need in the Autism community for tools and support that simply aren’t available right now. I am committed to using my gifts in the highest way possible.

Children on the Spectrum Have Trouble Moving

  • There is a marked higher instance of gross motor deficits in children with Autism than their neurotypical peers
  • Gross motor deficits can include abnormal gait pattern, hip flexibility, spatial awareness, and trunk stability
  • These issues DO NOT SELF-CORRECT in time
  • Self-esteem suffers; they cannot perform many movements, cannot understand what’s expected of them, and in turn become even more socially awkward
  • Organized sports do not set the foundation for long-term skills and overcoming movement deficits
  • Many schools have cut or don’t regularly offer PE!
  • It’s been proven that children (and adults!) perform better on tests and cognitive functioning after they’ve moved around

The Fitness 4 Autism Program

  • I provide custom profile assessments to determine the quality of movement pattern and any deficits or exceptions that may be relevant
  • Pushing, pulling, squatting, and rotating movements done together will directly benefit physical, adaptive, and cognitive abilities
  • Working with your child and fitness boosts confidence, independence, and self-esteem and teaches goal setting
  • No expensive, large equipment needed! I come to you.
  • These movements taught also benefit not just sensory and gross motor skills, but fine motor skills as well
  • Speech targets, communication, and behavioral targets can also be incorporated into the program
  • Sharing this program with your child will also benefit the entire family – it sets everyone up for long-term health and fitness

Special Needs Training for Emergency Responders

With the staggering number of children being born on the Autism spectrum, one sector that absolutely needs to understand how these children process information and respond to situations is public safety. First and emergency responders are not trained to recognize and handle the unique physical and behavioral symptoms of Autistic patients or victims, which are likely to be exacerbated by a crisis or injury.

Do you think an Emergency Responder would know how to handle these behaviors?

  • Difficulty understanding language or gestures
  • Inability to follow multiple commands
  • Limited or no speech, or repetitive phrases only
  • Avoids eye contact
  • Spinning, rocking, flapping arms, hitting self, biting self
  • Inappropriate laughter or response
  • May not feel cold, heat, or pain in a typical manner
  • Hyper or hypo sensitivity to light, sound, smell, touch, or taste
  • Abnormal fears or lack of fear in a dangerous situation

I provide workshops and training classes for EMS, Fire Departments, Police Departments, Red Cross, and others where needed.

Overall, I am grateful to have a taste of following one of my dreams. I’m even more grateful to be able to continue volunteering for the county, helping to prepare families for disasters and hazards and being trained and able to respond to them when they arise.

Most of all, I am ecstatic that I can use my passions and dreams (and failures!) to refocus my energy and help children and families affected by Autism.

For more information on Fitness 4 Autism Program or Training for Emergency Responders, call 404.939.6211 or email Debi@SpiritOfAutism.org