A new autism center in Lenexa is offering an innovative approach to treatment with children who fall on the autism spectrum.
Autism From The Start opened its doors June 6 and has a staff many families would never find in one location.
"You can come and get an autism evaluation here. You can come and get intensive treatment and you can get it from the entire team. You can't get that anywhere else. And you're at 'grandma's house,' so it's super cozy,” said Dr. Michelle Macrorie, the clinical psychologist who owns the center.
The staff calls AFTS “grandma’s house” because of its location inside a century-old home formally owned by a wealthy Lenexa family at the turn of the century.
"It is nothing like anything else, private practice wise, school wise, hospital-rehab wise. It's something that you really get to engage with the kids in their environment. In a safe environment where they can play,” said Missy Sustar, a speech pathologist who is going into her clinical fellowship year at AFTS.
The center is for children under 5 years old and the belief is that the intense, customized, one-on-one attention inside a home-like setting will show greater progress in the treatment of autism.
"Typically centers are full of small therapy spaces with maybe dividers. But when you're working with a very young population, we don't wanna be sitting at a table. That's not the natural way they're learning,” said Amy Sanner, a behavioral analyst who’s been working with kids for 20 years.
Sanner said the AFTS setting is more ideal because it allows the children to demonstrate their social and sensory skills in a variety of places and the behavior analysis is typically what families need when their child is first diagnosed.
"Not enough children are being served. We know that if we provide instruction to children when they're young, you have the most availability for change,” said Sanner.
The center says their costs are comparable to other traditional facilities. They also offer parent training as well.
Staff at AFTS include:
- Psychologists
- Behavior analysts
- Speech pathologists
- Occupational therapists
- Music therapists
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story stated that AFTS accepts insurance, this was removed from the above copy because they do not accept insurance.
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Josh Helmuth can be reached at josh.helmuth@kshb.com
