Highlands Hospital, Cleveland Clinic collaboration promises brighter future for children with autism

California University of Pennsylvania students will gain clinical experience at new center in Connellsville, Pa.

A unique collaboration in one of Pennsylvania's most medically underserved regions promises a brighter future for children with autism and their families.

Highlands Hospital, a not-for-profit community hospital in Connellsville, Pa., has entered into a consultation agreement with the Ohio-based Cleveland Clinic to develop state-of-the-art services for children with autism in southwestern Pennsylvania.

Graduate students from California University of Pennsylvania, in California, Pa., will prepare for careers in special education by participating in clinical experiences at the Autism Center, scheduled to open next year.

Research by the Cleveland Clinic shows that 1 in every 94 children in the United States has some form of autism. In rural Fayette County, Pa., an estimated 444 individuals ages 5-24 are affected by this complex developmental disability that appears in early childhood and affects communication and social interaction. Statistics suggest that an additional 82 Fayette County children younger than 5 also will be diagnosed.

Cleveland Clinic Autism Development Solutions (CCADS) will assist Highlands Hospital in designing and staffing the new Autism Center, which will offer developmental screening and a day program that children with autism will attend five days a week, year-round.

Empirical studies conducted by Cleveland Clinic show that the program's approach, Applied Behavioral Analysis, is effective in teaching basic and complex skills to children with autism. California University students will learn to apply their ABA skills by working with Highlands professionals who have been trained by CCADS staff.  

No similar program is available in the region, which has one of the highest poverty rates in Pennsylvania. Many Fayette County families lack both economic resources and basic transportation, making it difficult for them to access services for their children on the autism spectrum. The hospital will offer both community-based autism services and community awareness education to encourage early diagnoses.

Highlands Hospital will be the nation's third health-care provider to open an Autism Center with assistance from Cleveland Clinic Autism Development Solutions. Successful programs are under way at Highlands Regional Medical Center in Prestonburg, Ky., and at the Ozark Center for Autism in Joplin, Mo.