Patients organise autism awareness event

In support of World Autism Awareness Week, our service users from Mackaness Ward organised and hosted an event to raise awareness of autism.

The event included a sensory stand - which gave people the opportunity to understand how sensory tools are used to support people with autism who often experience sensory overload - as well as representatives from our Speech and Language team, occupational therapy team, sports and exercise team and chaplaincy. Lots of information about autism was provided, combined with fun, games and food!

Donna, Activities Coordinator on Mackaness ward, said “The event was a great opportunity to tell other people in St Andrew’s about our ward, and inform people about the needs of people with autism. It was also a chance for our service users to interact with other people.”

A service user, who played a big part in organising the event, said: “The event has gone very well – we wanted to educate people about autism and encourage them not to treat people with autism differently but just to be aware that they may have some difficulties communicating with other people. We would like to thank everyone for any donations made which will support with raising awareness and further research about autism.”

To find out more about World Autism Awareness Week and how you can best support people with autism, click here.

Every Little Step towards community living

At St Andrew’s Healthcare we are committed to supporting people with learning disabilities and autism to live a meaningful life in the community.

For those people who are in our care, we offer a range of opportunities to support them with every little step of their recovery journey towards community living.

Every Little Step: Click here to find out how we support our patients for life in the community.