North Bay receives FASD funding
Keep them alive and keep them out of jail!
All too often, these inconsolable words are the only advice offered to parents of pubescent youth suffering from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), according to Elaine Cousineau, FASD program co-ordinator at North Bay's Community Counselling Centre.
However, on April 2, good news in the form of a $120,800 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation made it possible for Cousineau to promote awareness and education of FASD within North Bay and Nipissing District.
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is an umbrella term describing a range of disabilities caused by pre-natal exposure to alcohol. Some of the effects on the fetus during pregnancy vary, but can include primary and secondary physical, mental, behavioural and/or learning disabilities.
Primary disabilities refer to the physical and mental problems with which a child is born. Secondary disabilities may occur if the primary characteristics are not addressed effectively, according to Cousineau's FASD Community Needs Assessment report (2005). This may include depression, suicide attempts, violent or threatening behaviour, sexual deviance, trouble with the law, truancy, running away from home, and drug and alcohol abuse.
The number and severity of symptoms depends upon when and how much alcohol was consumed during the pregnancy. Because there is no known safe amount to drink, abstaining from alcohol while pregnant and maintaining good health makes this disease 100 per cent preventable.
Cousineau described the Trillium Foundation funding as "an absolute breakthrough!"
She became an advocate for FASD in North Bay and the Nipissing District when she discovered her adopted daughter manifested the secondary symptoms of the disease at puberty.
"When I looked into FASD, I decided no parent should have to go through what we went through," she said. Since that time, Cousineau has sought out information on FASD throughout Canada and the United States, attended conferences, workshops and now lectures about the disease.
In 2005, she was hired by the Community Counselling Centre to perform a needs assessment, which has resulted in some of the educational and awareness efforts being performed today, said Christine Redden, program director of the Centre.
"There is a lot of consultation to service providers as well as families and individuals so they are able to offer some support in the proper context," she said.
Despite difficulties obtaining consistent funds to support FASD programs, Cousineau has been the driving force behind helping families with FASD children and promoting education to local community agencies, schools and other organizations.
The two-year grant has enabled the centre to extend its mandate and hire Cousineau full time to deliver an educational program to the community and outlying areas.
Prior to hiring Cousineau to perform the assessment, there was little funding or support services for non-Aboriginal FASD patients and families.
"Our biggest challenge to date is that no provincial ministry is taking responsibility for FASD," said Redden.
The Ministry of Health and Ministry of Child and Youth Services funds programs for people with alcohol problems, she said, but competing priorities for funds has left FASD out in the cold.
Fortunately, Redden sees change on the horizon, particularly with the recent news of the grant.
"It is as much time and money as we've ever had to do education and rally the community to develop some further planning down the road."
Year one will involve the preparation of an information package that will be distributed throughout the region to police, children's aid, counselling centres, educational facilities and agencies that may come in contact with FASD people. A community plan will be designed with input from families and organizations to deliver programs and services for people and families living with the disorder.
Year two will involve the completion of a memorandum of understanding that specifies a collaborative set of responsibilities across multiple sectors and creates a network of support and services for those afflicted by FASD.
Each year, Cousineau will deliver 50 presentations/workshops to primary, secondary, college and university students and teachers; individuals and families affected by FASD; social services; health and justice agency staff; and religious organizations.
As of early August, Cousineau had performed 12 presentations highlighting the characteristics and difficulties of FASD, as well as giving suggestions for strategies and interventions in dealing with people afflicted by the disability. She will continue to address residents in the city of North Bay and in as many outlying areas as possible, including Mattawa, Sturgeon Falls, Powassan, Temagami and Parry Sound.
Future plans are to set up a diagnostic clinic in North Bay. Cousineau said she has received interest from several health-care professionals in the area that could possibly make up an interdisciplinary team required to diagnose the disability. n
www.cccnip.com/cs-services-fasd.html
