PESHAWAR: The health department will establish autism therapeutic clinics in 10 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to ensure free rehabilitation of the 150,000 children diagnosed with the disease in the province.
These clinics will operate on a no-profit-no-loss basis, ensuring affordable care for all affected children in Peshawar, Haripur, Mardan, Charsadda, Mansehra, Swabi, Chitral, Dera Ismail Khan, Swat, and Dir, targeting both urban and remote areas, according to a press release issued here on Tuesday.
While citing the Autism Society of Pakistan’s 2023 data, the release said KP was home to 150,000 children with autism, with no existing government-run facilities for their mental rehabilitation. A significant number of these children belong to remote areas, where no centeres are currently available for their treatment and rehabilitation.
A Memorandum of Understanding linked between the health department and the Autism and Learning Disabilities Organisation will set up clinics at the District Headquarters Hospitals of the 10 districts in five years.
The department will provide necessary space and professional human resources for the clinics to provide free services.
These clinics will be staffed with qualified psychologists, who will offer specialised services for the mental rehabilitation of children with autism.
Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2024
