New Partnership with ECHO Autism To Move Knowledge, Not People
Smile A While’s new program as part of ECHO Autism will connect knowledge to children and families in Jamaica for better care.
Moving Knowledge, Not People
Earlier this year, our Founder and Executive Director, Joanne Oates, connected with ECHO Autism Project with a dream of bringing better care to children with autism in Jamaica.
We are excited to announce that we are officially opening an ECHO Autism Jamaica Program to serve the children of Jamaica.
About ECHO Autism
ECHO Autism is an organization with a mission to democratize expertise and disseminate best practices to mentor and guide communities of clinicians, educators and advocates, creating local expertise and increasing access for autistic people and their families. Both ECHO Autism and Smile A While are aligned in our vision for a world where people with all abilities are able to live their best lives when given the support they need.
The ECHO Autism model is about moving knowledge, not people. Through telementoring, ECHO creates access to high quality specialty care in local communities. Our main goals of our ECHO Autism Jamaica Program are to promptly and accurately identify autism in Jamaican children, connect them with resources and services available, and remove barriers to access – all to ensure the best possible outcomes for children and their families.
Jamaica ECHO Autism …
Joanne Oates recently signed our ECHO partnership documents and has completed the ECHO Partner Launch Training.
ECHO Autism Jamaica will be able to provide twice a month access to a team of medical professionals who will allow our team to clinically diagnose and make a game plan to care for the child.
Our goal is to open our Jamaica ECHO Autism Program in 2023. We need to have a few more pieces in place to make this happen, including establishing our expert team and coordinating efforts with partners in Jamaica to refer kids in need.
ECHO Austim will provide twice a month, 90 minute sessions to meet with an expert team and discuss particular student cases. In general, one session will support creating a strategic therapy plan for one child.
Each of these 90 minute sessions require a member from Smile A While Foundation to be there as well as the expert therapist team.
… Coming soon, with your support!
This is where we need your help!
Your $100 gift will allow us to bring a professional on to one 90 minute session. It is essential that these experts are available and able to discuss each child with dedicated attention to best support each individuals’ needs. This helps us to move the knowledge needed to Jamaica and create a dramatic impact in the lives of these kids.
Can we count on you to support special needs children and their families in Jamaica?
