Ministry to improve facilities for autistic children

THE HEALTH Ministry will immediately take steps to improve existing services at Athalassa hospital’s autism wing, the minister said yesterday.

Speaking to reporters following a visit to the ward, Costas Kadis said that fixing up special areas for autistic children would have a significant improvement on conditions at the ward.

“Four rooms in the ward will be specially tidied up for children with autism,” Kadis said.

He said that beyond the inpatient areas, there would be a special section that would function as a kitchen and another space mapped out as a recreation area.

Access to the outdoors would also be created so that the children were not forced to remain cooped up inside a room all day, he said.

Furthermore the ministry was examining the possibility of improving existing services by hiring additional staff.

“We are going to discuss the possibility of bolstering the specific service with specialised personnel with the Labour Minister, so that these children receive the suitable care,” he said.

“Some works have started immediately, such as fencing in the area and painting the rooms and changing the doors,” he added.

Other works, which first had to be discussed with the Public Works Department, would be promoted shortly.

“We will hold a meeting with the Public Works Department so that we can see what needs to be done and to set out a specific timeframe and the procedure to promote the work that needs to be carried out,” he said.

Asked whether the children might be transferred to a different premises, the Health Minister said a special committee made up of representatives from the Ministries of Health, Education and Labour had been set up to prepare alternative proposals regarding the creation of an Autism Centre.

He said the proposals would be submitted to a ministerial committee within the month. The committee will then make a final decision on how and where such a centre would be created.

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