Many Young Adults With Autism Face Unemployment, Isolation
Many Young Adults With Autism Face Unemployment, Isolation
By Alan Mozes
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, April 21, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- As children with autism grow older, many approach adulthood without continued access to the kind of special needs services they routinely received as children, a new report warns.
The "National Autism Indicators Report: Transition into Young Adulthood" also reveals that such children may enter adulthood without the advanced planning they need to find jobs or live independently after high school.
Autism spectrum disorders are a group of developmental problems that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Some of the more concerning findings in the report from Drexel University's A.J. Drexel Autism Institute include:
"In public health, this is what we call a wicked problem, because it is complex and requires bigger-picture thinking to generate solutions," said report lead author Anne Roux, a research scientist with the Life Course Outcomes Research Program at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute in Philadelphia.
"We believe an 'all hands on deck' approach is needed" -- involving communities, businesses, government agencies, schools, nonprofits, medical providers and families -- "to improve the quality of life for adults with autism and their families," Roux said.
Roughly one in 68 U.S. children is diagnosed with some form of autism, according to Lisa Goring, executive vice president of programs and service for Autism Speaks in New York City. "And we know that over the next 10 years, 500,000 young adults with autism will become adults with autism," she said.
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, April 21, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- As children with autism grow older, many approach adulthood without continued access to the kind of special needs services they routinely received as children, a new report warns.
The "National Autism Indicators Report: Transition into Young Adulthood" also reveals that such children may enter adulthood without the advanced planning they need to find jobs or live independently after high school.
Autism spectrum disorders are a group of developmental problems that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Some of the more concerning findings in the report from Drexel University's A.J. Drexel Autism Institute include:
- Just 58 percent of young adults with autism had paid employment in the years between high school and their early 20s,
- Only 36 percent had enrolled in some type of post-high school education,
- About one-quarter were found to be socially isolated, meaning they didn't maintain any contact with friends,
- Only about one in five ended up living independently (without parental supervision) in the period between high school and their early 20s,
- More than one-third -- 37 percent -- of young adults with autism were found to be essentially "disconnected" from any job or educational prospects by the end of their early 20s.
"In public health, this is what we call a wicked problem, because it is complex and requires bigger-picture thinking to generate solutions," said report lead author Anne Roux, a research scientist with the Life Course Outcomes Research Program at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute in Philadelphia.
"We believe an 'all hands on deck' approach is needed" -- involving communities, businesses, government agencies, schools, nonprofits, medical providers and families -- "to improve the quality of life for adults with autism and their families," Roux said.
Roughly one in 68 U.S. children is diagnosed with some form of autism, according to Lisa Goring, executive vice president of programs and service for Autism Speaks in New York City. "And we know that over the next 10 years, 500,000 young adults with autism will become adults with autism," she said.
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