Autism Aspergers Advocacy Australia

Stephen Lunn and Sarah Ison

The NDIS Review final report is available from https://www.ndisreview.gov.au/resources/reports/working-together-deliver-ndis

It's a 338 page report. There is an infographic that might be a good introduction or summary ... for those who find those accessible.

An Easy Read version is also available. 

Joshua Haigh

A heartbroken mother is desperate for answers after her austisic son was allowed to starve to death in hospital.

A mother is calling for an investigation into the failings at a major Queensland hospital after her autistic son died from starvation while under the care of its doctors.

Stewart Kelly, 45, died at Robina Hospital in August last year from starvation and dehydration during a 33-day admission.

Amber Schultz

Children with neurodevelopmental delays risk having the number of supports they access slashed by two-thirds if new restrictions are brought into the National Disability Insurance Scheme to address cost blowouts, a new paper has found.

Angela Shanahan

Sam Nichols

Chantel Le Cross remembers the first time they felt heard in an emergency room.

It was only two months ago.

The 33-year-old, who is selective non-verbal autistic, was rushed to hospital in September in intense pain. An endometrial cyst wrapped around one of their fallopian tubes had ruptured.

Because Chantel was screaming in agony, they say workers were able to understand their suffering. But that level of attention isn't typical.

By Ashleigh Keating

Connor Winfield was a gifted student, so no one could understand why he found school so difficult.

Key points:

• Autism is the fastest growing disability in Australia, having increased by 25 per cent between 2015 and 2019
• Mainstream teachers often lack the training and resources to cater for the needs of neurodiverse students
• Experts and advocates are calling for autism-specific training to be mandatory for teachers

"I would bet that most of my teachers did not understand what autism was," he said.

By Amber Schultz

It took Mariam Mukhtar nearly two years to have her teenage son Raamiz assessed for autism following a paediatric referral, and she fears the delay in getting him support has cost him his high school experience.

“Having support at the right time … that would have been a life-changing experience,” she said.

From the outset as Minister for the NDIS, The Hon. Bill Shorten MP, said (15/6/2022):

The NDIS will not fulfil the promise if it is the only lifeboat in the ocean for people living with disability.

Minister Shorten is increasingly concerned in relation to Autistic Australians needing NDIS support. He’s used this analogy repeatedly since then.