CDB and SLACD launch childhood autism awareness campaign

Head table from left: WHO Representative Dr. Jacob Kumaresan, Consultant Paediatrician Dr. Samanmali Sumanasena, Deputy Director General Health Services Dr. Champika Wickramasinghe, CDB MD, CEO Mahesh Nanayakkara, Consultant Child Psychiatrist Prof. Hemamali Perera – Pic by Shehan Gunasekara

Citizens Development Business Finance PLC (CDB) in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development launched an islandwide Autism Awareness Campaign to ensure that every child with autism receives early detection and attention, reducing the negative impact that autism has on their lives. 

The Autism Awareness Campaign, the flagship CSR project being mooted by CDB with the collaboration of SLACD was inaugurated at the CDB Auditorium to coincide with CDB’s 20th anniversary. The Campaign will gain added value with the establishment of an Autism Trust Fund to ensure sustainability of the project.  

Shedding light on the complexity of autism and the challenges children with autism face, Director General of Health Services Dr. Palitha Mahipala reiterated: “Every child with autism matters; find them early and count all of them in.”

Given that autism impairs a person’s ability to communicate and relate to others within social contexts and is reported to impact one in 93 people with boys being more likely to be affected than girls, Consultant Child Psychiatrist Professor Hemamali Perera stated that it is vital, “To give these children a chance to grow.”  If autism is detected in a child prior to the age of two, there will be positive impacts on the child, improving cognitive, behavioural and inter-personal development dramatically.  

CDB Managing Director and CEO Mahesh Nanayakkara elucidates the reasoning behind CDB making the Autism Awareness Campaign its flagship CSR project. “This complex neuro-developmental disorder is determined at time of birth although it becomes more evident as the child grows older, given that social relationships and language development are hampered. Therefore the parents play a vital role in recognising this condition early, and they can make timely presentations to the health services. However this is not happening in Sri Lanka at present due to the lack of public awareness.”

Nanayakkara adds that CDB’s involvement in the project is due to the magnanimity of this disorder in Sri Lanka, which can easily be managed with early detection and more awareness among the public about the disorder. “Creating awareness will instigate timely interventions for early detection prompting an improvement of the child’s functional outcome and also bring about a better understanding of the disorder.”  

The Sri Lanka Association of Child Development is the first multi-disciplinary professional association in the country, dedicated to child development, encompassing a cohort of germane stakeholders including doctors, clinical psychologists, therapists, social service officers, teachers and special educationists. On the theme, ‘Act early for Autism’, the SLACD thus collaborates with CDB to launch this vital national programme, dubbing the fact that autism awareness is the need of the hour. 

Urging people to, “Detect autism early and act early to unleash the potential of children with autism,” the Chairperson of this project at the Sri Lanka Association of Child Development Dr. Samanamali Sumanasena said, “We plan on rolling out a comprehensive programme to create awareness amongst all Sri Lankans, aided by a separate budget to establish the Autism Trust Fund. The Autism Awareness Campaign will include media communications designed to create greater understanding of the features and symptoms of this complex disorder, making it easier for parents and family members to detect the disorder and seek medical help. 

A telephone helpdesk (011 749 0000) will support communication channels, enabling parents to access information and when required will be referred for specialised services within their own districts. The Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children has also published a handbook on autism to assist the campaign.