Category Archives: Online Videos

New Video: Identifying and Treating Co-occurring Mental Health Challenges in Children with ASD

When Dr. Vikram Dua presented this talk for ACT last year, the event was sold-out. For those of you who missed this great presentation, it is now available for free online as part of AVA – Autism Videos @ ACT.

Dr. Dua (who is now Psychiatrist-in-Chief at Surrey Place Centre in Toronto and sorely missed in B.C.), describes how children with ASD frequently have co-occurring mental health challenges, including ADHD, anxiety disorders and tic disorders, which can be more disabling than autism. He introduces his approach, the Autism Comorbidity Algorithm (ACA), which frames and guides clinical and diagnostic assessment and treatment decisions through a developmental lens. While aimed at clinicians and community professionals, many families will find this a very useful orientation to the widely misunderstood linkages between autism and mental health given the significant shortage of mental health professionals with knowledge of autism in B.C.

Seeking Feedback on Autism Videos @ ACT

Have you watched any of the 16 videos available on Autism Videos @ ACT (AVA)? ACT’s free online educational video platform is key to ACT’s goal of supporting parents and professionals around B.C. We would like to know what you think about AVA’s content and technology. We have developed a feedback form for AVA and would appreciate your opinions and ideas on how we can be more responsive to the training needs of parents and professionals.

If you haven’t seen an AVA video, we urge you to explore our full length , professionally edited workshops, on key topics, from respected presenters, including Best Practices, Toilet Training, Puberty, Sleep, and Education, with more in the pipeline!

New Free Video – Best Practices in Early Intervention: an Update

Best Practices in Early Intervention: An Update on the Research and Helping Families Build the “Team”

Presented by Karen D. Bopp, Ph.D., RSLP; Senior Behaviour Consultant /Autism Policy, MCFD and Adjunct Professor, Dept. of Educational Counselling Psychology and Special Education, Faculty of Education, UBC

This is a new presentation building on Dr. Bopp’s 2012 video on Best Practices. This update provides an overview of current best practice treatment approaches for children and youth with ASD with a new section on alternative and complementary treatments. It focuses on developing collaborative partnerships between behavior consultants, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists and other professionals in order to enhance outcomes for children with ASD and provide their families with meaningful support. Dr. Bopp has spent over 20 years in the autism field, as a clinician, researcher and in policy development.

Topics covered include:

Evidence-Based Practices: Key Elements
Intervention Models
Alternative and Complementary Treatments: What Do We Know?

Access all 16 of ACT’s videos online at http://www.actcommunity.ca/videos. These free videos can be viewed on your computer or mobile device. Each video is edited into smaller chunks, so you can watch a few segments at a time on a range of topics.

New Autism Video @ ACT – Navigating Puberty and Beyond

Navigating Puberty, Adolescence and Beyond: Supporting Individuals with Neuro-Developmental Challenges

Is available free of charge, and on demand!

Presented by Joy Becker, RN, BSN

Joy Becker uses humour and insight to provide parents, caregivers, and professionals a foundation for teaching individuals with ASD and/or other special needs about sexuality and their bodies. It is geared to individuals with age-appropriate language skills and includes information about the sexual development of children, and the information they should understand at various stages of their development. It is designed to address the anxieties caregivers and parents may experience when they discuss sexuality with their children. Education can help children and young adults develop safe relationships and protect them from sexual exploitation, which is more likely to happen if children with special needs are not provided information.

Joy Becker, RN, BSN is a nurse educator who draws on many years of experience in educating teenagers with special needs. She emphasizes the importance of parents as the primary sexuality educators of their children. Ms. Becker has two sons on the autism spectrum and lives in Nanaimo.

Watch more free videos online

Access all 16 of ACT’s 16 videos online at www.actcommunity.ca/videos. These free videos can be viewed on your computer or mobile device. Each video is edited into smaller chunks, so you can watch a few segments at a time on a range of topics including:

Toilet Training for Everyone – It’s Never Too Late! – Our most popular video!
Solving Sleep Problems in Children with ASD – A good night’s sleep is fundamental to all children being able to learn, and for their parents to function.
Education, Integration, Inclusion: Key Information for Parents of Children with Special Needs – covers the B.C School system, and how to be an effective advocate for your child. Includes discussion of collaboration tools, key sections of the B.C. School Act and other crucial policy..

Tax Time – Expert Advice for Special Needs Families – Free

It is the time of year when we would all like more expertise in figuring out how to make the proper claims for our family members with disabilities and how to protect them from financial abuse. For a free online presentation from one of Canada’s leading tax lawyers, who understands the particular issues facing families who have children who require additional protection, see Blair Dwyer’s presentation on Estate Planning at Autism Videos @ ACT (AVA). This presentation is free, available on your schedule and divided into small chunks to for easier viewing!

ACT welcomes support for AVA and other projects. For more information on how to contribute see the ACT website.