GCMH occupational therapist educates students about autism

GRUNDY CENTER – Over the last several years, the number of children diagnosed with autism has continued to rise drastically.
According to statistics, approximately one in every 2,000 children had autism in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, the CDC estimates that one in every 150 children in the U.S. has an autism spectrum disorder, or ASD.
Yet many people don’t recognize the signs of autism, or know how to behave towards someone diagnosed with it.
With April being National Autism Awareness Month, Margo Dierdoff - an occupational therapist at the Grundy County Memorial Hospital - set off to teach students at the Grundy Center Middle School a little more about what autism is, and what it’s like to live with the disorder.
“As the number of individuals diagnosed with Autism continue to rise, I believe that educating the younger population at this particular age is very important, as this is when they tend to be much more judgmental and intolerant of individuals who behave out of the norms of society,” Dierdoff said.
For the full story, see this week's Grundy Register.