Centre gives mothers hope in the face of despair
Jul 21, 2009
CHRISTOPHER Komo showed no interest in other children, threw violent temper tantrums and was extremely hyper as a child. When he was four, he was diagnosed with autism, a brain development disorder.
By Isabel Pike
CHRISTOPHER Komo showed no interest in other children, threw violent temper tantrums and was extremely hyper as a child. When he was four, he was diagnosed with autism, a brain development disorder.
Though Komo went to a regular nursery school, he spent most of his time playing in the school garden. “It was just a safe place for him to spend the day,†says his mother Elizabeth Kaleeba, who grew increasingly anxious as the time to go to primary school approached. “It dawned on me that I had nowhere to take him,†she says.
So, in 2006, Kaleeba converted a family property in Entebbe and founded The Komo Centre, an education, care and support centre for children and families affected by autism in Uganda. It was the first of its kind in Uganda.
The Komo Centre’s enrollment has grown from two children when the centre first opened, to 22 children today. Only six of the students are autistic. Though classes for the two groups are separate, they share play time and sports activities.
According to Kaleeba, this mixing helps the social skills of the autistic children. Recently, all the children spent the afternoon painting colourful murals on the centre’s walls.
The teachers, who are trained in special needs education, create unique learning plans for each child, with goals ranging from how to make eye contact to matching objects with pictures and symbols.
The centre also works with the families of 19 other autistic children, most of whom live in Kampala and so cannot enroll at the centre. Teachers from the centre make home visits and carry out training that focuses on normal living.
“Wake up, brush your teeth, sit down, have a cup of tea. If the child knows how to do these things, life is much easier for the parent.†Kaleeba is proud that her son, now 11, can bathe and make a snack by himself.
Kaleeba recently gave birth to another son. Initially, she was worried that Komo might not react well to an additional sibling but not any longer.
What is autism?
Autism is a developmental brain disorder. Children with autism struggle in three main areas: social skills, language and communication. Symptoms include lack of eye contact, minimal social talking, strange hand and body movements and repetition of daily rituals.
“The abnormal social behaviour of autistic people causes them to be misunderstood,†says Dr. Justus Byarugaba, a pediatric neurologist at Mulago Hospital. He says some autistic people can be highly intelligent.
Children as young as one year show signs of autism. So parents should take their child to the doctor immediately their child is significantly late on any developmental milestones.
“The younger the child is taken to a doctor, the better. With the right attention, their social interactions can be improved,†says Dr. Byarugaba. Warning signs for autism include: No big smiles by six months, no babbling by 12 months and no words by 16 months.
Autism is not contagious. Boys are four times more likely to have autism than girls.
Although no official statistics exist on autism in Uganda, the CDC estimates that one in 150 children are affected by autism, suggesting that more than 100,000 Ugandan children may have the disorder.
CHRISTOPHER Komo showed no interest in other children, threw violent temper tantrums and was extremely hyper as a child. When he was four, he was diagnosed with autism, a brain development disorder.
Though Komo went to a regular nursery school, he spent most of his time playing in the school garden. “It was just a safe place for him to spend the day,†says his mother Elizabeth Kaleeba, who grew increasingly anxious as the time to go to primary school approached. “It dawned on me that I had nowhere to take him,†she says.
So, in 2006, Kaleeba converted a family property in Entebbe and founded The Komo Centre, an education, care and support centre for children and families affected by autism in Uganda. It was the first of its kind in Uganda.
The Komo Centre’s enrollment has grown from two children when the centre first opened, to 22 children today. Only six of the students are autistic. Though classes for the two groups are separate, they share play time and sports activities.
According to Kaleeba, this mixing helps the social skills of the autistic children. Recently, all the children spent the afternoon painting colourful murals on the centre’s walls.
The teachers, who are trained in special needs education, create unique learning plans for each child, with goals ranging from how to make eye contact to matching objects with pictures and symbols.
The centre also works with the families of 19 other autistic children, most of whom live in Kampala and so cannot enroll at the centre. Teachers from the centre make home visits and carry out training that focuses on normal living.
“Wake up, brush your teeth, sit down, have a cup of tea. If the child knows how to do these things, life is much easier for the parent.†Kaleeba is proud that her son, now 11, can bathe and make a snack by himself.
Kaleeba recently gave birth to another son. Initially, she was worried that Komo might not react well to an additional sibling but not any longer.
What is autism?
Autism is a developmental brain disorder. Children with autism struggle in three main areas: social skills, language and communication. Symptoms include lack of eye contact, minimal social talking, strange hand and body movements and repetition of daily rituals.
“The abnormal social behaviour of autistic people causes them to be misunderstood,†says Dr. Justus Byarugaba, a pediatric neurologist at Mulago Hospital. He says some autistic people can be highly intelligent.
Children as young as one year show signs of autism. So parents should take their child to the doctor immediately their child is significantly late on any developmental milestones.
“The younger the child is taken to a doctor, the better. With the right attention, their social interactions can be improved,†says Dr. Byarugaba. Warning signs for autism include: No big smiles by six months, no babbling by 12 months and no words by 16 months.
Autism is not contagious. Boys are four times more likely to have autism than girls.
Although no official statistics exist on autism in Uganda, the CDC estimates that one in 150 children are affected by autism, suggesting that more than 100,000 Ugandan children may have the disorder.