Question
Can telepractice be used with individuals with autism?
Answer
I am a wholehearted believer in telepractice for some individuals with autism. If you have a high-functioning individual or individual with a very low level of severity who can interact with you from a distance, who can pay attention and be vigilant enough to pay attention, I think it can be very impactful. If you are working with family members and instructing them on how to interact with their children, I think it can be very impactful. Telepractice has a real role to play. It is very hard for families to get to therapy all the time. I think this is one way that we could have a greater intensity of intervention, and intensity in this population is really paramount.
Tina Veale is Program Director and Professor in the Speech-Language Pathology Program at Midwestern University. Dr. Veale teaches courses in research methods, child language disorders, autism spectrum disorders, neurology, and motor speech disorders. Clinically, she addresses the needs of clients with autism and other developmental disabilities.
