During this week we have learned about ethics in research and it's importance. There are examples of research that was done in unethical ways, but fortunately there are also plenty of examples of research done with positive outcomes. From my personal experiences I have seen that research for children and families can have positive outcomes when ethical standards are met. I have some family friends that discovered that their daughter is Autistic. They were able to find this diagnosis when she was about 3 years old and they have relied on research ever since. With the diagnosis they found that she was on the moderate side of the Autism spectrum. They have tried many different therapies for her and it has been a lot of trial and error when finding certain therapies that work. Through research of which therapies can help children in her situation, it has had positive outcomes for those children. As a family they have discovered that horse therapy along with various other speech therapy sessions have really helped their daughter. Through them I can see that research for therapies for children can be done in ethical ways to provide positive outcomes. When research is done under ethical standards then the benefits can truly be something great. 
Hi! Heather, great story. I certainly believe that if research are carried in an ethical manner than it would certainly benefits the society and its people. As in your story about the different therapies for autism and how research found out about useful therapies for certain type of autism spectrum.
ReplyDeleteHeather, Autism is on the rise in children from all walks of life. It is great that you friend is getting the various service and therapy the child needs. From my experiences with children diagnosed with Autism, it takes the parents a long time to fully comprehend what is going on with their child. Some are in denial and refuse any type of help or resources provided to them. But, most welcome the assistance and appreciated that someone care enough to share information with them. I believe that soon enough there will be greater research for children and more parenting classes. This is something that I will do some more research on because I believe my great niece is not just Down syndrome but also autistic and her parents are young and will need some assistance
ReplyDeleteHi Heather,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this. When finding medical treatment that works best for children, it really is trial and error. I worked with children with special needs children and it was difficult in finding the right medication for some our children with behavioral issues and those with medically diagnosed illnesses (we had two with rare illness that I can't recall). The parents would share their frustrations with us, but we saw first hand the effects of the various medications. A few of them caused more harm than good and it was heartbreaking to see the degenration. I read about horse therapy yielding great results with children who have disabilities. I am glad that it has worked out!