Building
Momentum

In 2019/20, we began working with Ontario Health Teams to create new partnerships and strengthen pathways and supports within the sector. This work advocates for building a health care system that fully supports people with developmental disabilities in the hospital and community by sharing strategies and knowledge about their unique needs.

Children with autism are five times more likely to have feeding difficulties than children without autism. Over the past decade, Surrey Place has supported hundreds of children in addressing feeding concerns and feeding skill development. Some children require very highly specialized supports and services, which is especially true for those with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). This newly termed eating disorder is defined as a persistent eating or feeding disturbance resulting in significant weight loss or nutritional deficiency, dependence on tube feeding or nutritional supplements, and/or impairment in psychosocial functioning. With help from an Autism Speaks grant, Surrey Place partnered with Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and the Hospital for Sick Children to bridge gaps by building an expert, interdisciplinary team that works together on an evidence-based, comprehensive assessment, diagnosis, and individualized treatment plans for children with ARFID.

Within the developmental disabilities sector, there is a gap in service when transitioning clients from one place to another, leading to individuals living in a hospital setting because they do not have the proper interprofessional support to move home or to a residential facility. We saw this gap and developed a bridge – Transitions Teams. This unique paid service supports complex situations through customizable, interdisciplinary services designed to help individuals with developmental disabilities transition. Suitable for all ages, Transitions Teams can prepare environments, people and situations with the appropriate clinical services, tools, resources and education. Our services are designed to work directly with professionals and agencies alongside family members and care providers.

Our Mobile Clinical Team provides specialized, interdisciplinary services that may otherwise not be accessible due to cost and other factors associated with the distance from major centres. In 2019/20, we secured a two-year contract to continue to provide culturally appropriate clinical services to the Lac Seul First Nation community in Northwestern Ontario. This Team bridges gaps by working in person and by video-conferencing with organizations and school boards to plan and facilitated client-centred strategies that meet the needs of individuals and their families and caregivers we serve.

At Surrey Place, we continuously re-assess our work to seek ways to improve the outcomes of the students we support. One identified gap in supports occurs when students discharge from our TRE-ADD program that services students with autism who have very complex, behaviours that challenge. Building on the established success of Connections for Students service delivered through the Ontario Autism Program, we began work with two local school boards, the School Support Program, and TRE-ADD to develop an enhanced joint service to target transitions of these complex students back into community school settings.