Your country is your routine: the evacuation, quarantine, and management of behavioral problems of a child with autism during COVID-19 pandemic

Özet

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak began to spread around the globe, countries reacted to the threat with a series of measures implemented in varying degrees. The Special Children Support System of Turkey was designed to provide multidisciplinary support for the families of children with developmental special needs who experience difficulty during COVID-19 pandemic and related home confinement. The system combines telehealth applications with services from local psychosocial intervention teams. This report describes the case of an 11-year old child with autism spectrum disorder who returned to Turkey from the United Kingdom and was housed in a dormitory for a mandatory 14-day quarantine period. The telehealth-based system developed by our institution specifically to support children with special needs during the COVID-19 pandemic was a tool the family used to help manage the circumstances. Changes in the environment and routine can be very difficult for those with autism. It is important that appropriate intervention mechanisms are available and used early. The intensive application of both behavioral and medical treatment with a multidisciplinary team resulted in a significant change in the patient’s symptoms, Access to and use of a rapid intervention system can have a decisive impact.