In Kathy Schrock’s mind, the earlier autism is diagnosed, the better.
Autism Diagnostic Clinic
Easter Seals DuPage and the Fox Valley Region
830 S. Addison, Villa Park
Open twice a month. For an evaluation, call Diana Dixon at (630)
282-2022.
eastersealsdfvr.org
For Easter Seals DuPage and the Fox Valley Region, that means reaching out to toddlers, while many other diagnostic clinics in the Chicago area won’t see a child before 3.
“We know that a diagnosis can occur at 2, that intervention is really critical in those first years of life,” says Schrock, vice president of clinical services at Easter Seals DuPage and the Fox River.
As autism rates continue to climb-now at one in 88 children and one in 54 for boys, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-demand for diagnosis and treatment has never been greater.
Schrock, who has been in the field 35 years, says in the last six years, Easter Seals has gone from serving just a few kids with autism to now almost 40 percent of the kids it serves having autism.
To meet that demand, Easter Seals recently opened an Autism Diagnostic Clinic that will focus primarily on very young children.
While Easter Seals has always provided diagnostic evaluations for infants and kids, until now, a child with suspected autism had to go elsewhere for a diagnosis and then return to Easter Seals for therapy.
“That didn’t make a lot of sense to us,” Schrock says.
