Tag: #Autism

Initial Hygiene Unveils the Signature Inclusive Sanitary Bin

Initial Hygiene, Ireland’s leading expert in commercial washroom hygiene solutions, has launched a new offering in washroom waste disposal: its Signature Inclusive Sanitary Bin.
Developed over two and a half years, this bin marks a turning point for the disposal of hygiene waste within the toilet cubicle. Whereas most washroom waste units on the market are not necessarily inclusive of all waste needs, either due to their capacity, cubicle orientation or opening type, this new bin can safely and discreetly handle all forms of period and incontinence waste in the cubicle. It is therefore the perfect solution for all washroom types (female, male, accessible and unisex).
Colm Moore, Regional Technical Manager with Initial Hygiene Ireland, comments: “We believe that every person deserves dignity when using public or workplace washrooms. No one should enter a washroom without the confidence that they will be able to dispose of their personal hygiene waste in a discreet and dignified way within the toilet cubicle.
“For too long, the design of washroom waste units has overlooked the needs of many users, including men managing incontinence waste disposal to those people who need to use accessible facilities. The Signature Inclusive Sanitary Bin changes that. It has been specially designed for dignity in every cubicle by discreetly managing the disposal of both menstrual and incontinence waste.” 
Alongside its new sanitary waste bin Initial Hygiene has also unveiled five new door signs to help raise awareness and educate on the broad range of disabilities and conditions that accessible* washrooms should accommodate.
Accessible washrooms are often assumed to be only for those with visible mobility challenges, which might be due to the historic use of the wheelchair symbol on signage. Initial Hygiene believes that accessible washrooms need better signage to raise awareness of the wide range of disabilities or long-term health conditions that may mean a person needs to use an accessible washroom.
For example, many people with invisible conditions such as, chronic pain, autism, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, anxiety, or those living with stoma bags will often need to use an accessible washroom. By adopting more inclusive signage, public spaces can send a clear message: accessible washrooms are for everyone, regardless of whether their disability or long-term health condition is visible or not.
Colm Moore, continues, “All too often, individuals with hidden disabilities may feel scrutinised when trying to use an accessible washroom. Door signage is a practical way to show what conditions an accessible washroom caters for as well as being a way of helping to educate other washroom users on the various reasons someone might need to use an accessible washroom. Currently, many signs only feature the traditional wheelchair symbol, which does not reflect the needs of those with less visible conditions.
“Everyone deserves a dignified washroom experience, and by introducing more inclusive signage, we can help ensure that accessible washrooms are recognised for what they truly are: spaces for everyone.”
This initiative comes at a crucial time, as research from the Irish Wheelchair Association shows that 66% of people with disabilities have trouble accessing public buildings, including toilets, and 68% believe facilities are inadequate. By supporting greater understanding and visibility of diverse needs, Initial Hygiene’s new signage aims to help building owners, businesses and local authorities create accessible washrooms that are more welcoming, better respected and used appropriately by those who need them.
For more information about the Signature Inclusive Sanitary Bin and Initial Hygiene’s full range of washroom hygiene solutions, visit www.initial.ie.
*By accessible washroom (also known as a disabled or accessible toilet), we mean a washroom space designed to accommodate people with disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs or have mobility impairments, with features like extra space for manoeuvrability, grab bars, and accessible fixtures. It will also contain a wash hand basin and hand drying solution, all within the same space.

Codex launches pioneering neuroinclusive workplace range

Codex, Ireland’s leading B2B provider of office supplies and solutions, has launched a new range of neuroinclusive workplace products designed to help Irish employers provide a more inclusive working environment for employees.

The ‘Thrive by Codex x AsIAm’ product range consisting of 34 Autism friendly products, were developed and tested in collaboration with AsIAm, Ireland’s  Autism charity in real workplace settings and were launched on the opening day of the Autism Europe Congress in Dublin, of which Codex is a platinum sponsor.

With the launch of its new neuroinclusive product range, Codex has become a leading advocate for the acceptance of neurodivergent employees and the need for more inclusive working environments. The company published a report earlier this year – ‘Neuroinclusion in the Workplace’ – which highlighted some of the daily challenges for neurodivergent employees including sensitivity to noise and light as well as issues with communication and social interaction.

With the findings from the report and the research that was carried out,  Codex has been working with AsIAm to launch its new range of products designed to foster a more inclusive and adaptive working environment. The centrepiece of the new range are bespoke,  AsIAm endorsed  ‘Balance Booths’ that allow employees to physically remove themselves from the noise and bustle of the work environment while remaining connected to their teams. ‘The Balance Booths’ have been designed with unique sensory features to provide further regulation opportunities, including tactile ridged dots on the underside of the table for sensory input, a fresh air feature, and coloured lights.

Other items in the new range include an acoustic lounge chair that provides a private, semi-enclosed space for employees who need to detach from the busy work environment and a range of office seats, stools and chairs including the ‘Swopper’, Numo Task chair and Variable kneeling chair that promote movement, which is vital to cognitive development and can also help employees to regulate and maintain focus.

The full neuroinclusive workplace product range is on display at the Autism Europe Congress in the RDS, which is being hosted by AsIAm and Autism Europe and where Codex is a platinum sponsor and exhibitor. Attendees at the 3-day event can try out the new pods and chairs for themselves and talk to members of Codex’s speciality Furniture and Interiors team about the products.

“We’re proud and excited to launch this groundbreaking range of neuroinclusive products that will help Irish employers and companies to build truly inclusive workplaces for their employees,” said Patrick Murphy, CEO of Codex and a keynote speaker at this week’s Autism Europe Congress in Dublin’s RDS.

“The new range has been developed in response to our own research, which found that many traditional workplace designs and social expectations can create unnecessary barriers for neurodivergent employees,” Mr Murphy said. “We were also delighted to be able to consult with our partners at AsIAm, who provided real-world insights and experience that helped to shape the new product offerings.

“We hope these new products will help pave the way for employers and employees to have a positive conversation about workplace inclusivity, starting here at the Autism Europe Congress,” Mr Murphy added.

Codex is already trusted by a range of organisations including universities and private sector companies to deliver products that support neurodivergent people. The company’s ‘Neuroinclusion in the Workplace’ report highlights ways in which employers can improve the everyday experience for neurodivergent employees or students.

“We welcome the launch of Codex’s neuroinclusive workplace range and are proud to have contributed to the development of these products, which are accessible and inclusive by design,” said Adam Harris, CEO of AsIAm “It is fitting that the new product range is being launched here at the 14th International Autism Europe Congress in Dublin and I’m sure ‘The Balance Booth’ and other products will be a big talking point among delegates.”

For more information about the Codex neuroinclusive workplace product range, please visit www.codex.ie

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Emirates named as the world’s first Autism Certified Airline

As part of Autism Awareness month, several milestones have been achieved on Emirates’ journey to make travel more accessible for all. One year after Emirates’ first successful ‘travel rehearsal’, the programme is now being rolled out across 17 cities – allowing children with autism to practice the journey through the airport in order to prepare for real flights. Emirates has also achieved its designation as the world’s first Autism Certified Airline™, with more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground staff now trained to support customers with autism. For the month of April, Emirates highlighted autism awareness to millions of passengers globally, showcasing a selection of movies, podcasts and TV shows about neurodiversity on its inflight entertainment system, ice.

Adel al Redha, Deputy President and COO, Emirates, said:

“Emirates has been driving and facilitating good progress in accessible travel, and it is part of our operational strategy. We continue to work on this mission to make travel more inclusive. At the beginning of 2024, we were recognised as a Certified Autism Center™. We have upskilled our teams and I am pleased to say that we are now the world’s first autism-certified airline, with 30, 000 frontline staff and cabin crew trained to support our customers with autism. Now we are also rolling out our Travel Rehearsal programme in cities across the globe, to break barriers and make travel accessible for everyone. This is part of our social and professional responsibility.”

Emirates’ Travel Rehearsals activated across 17 cities

Globally, Emirates has started rolling out its travel rehearsal programme to 17 cities including Barcelona, Brisbane, Budapest, Cebu, Christchurch, Dubai, Durban, Luanda, Madrid, Manila, Mauritius, Manchester, Montreal, Nice, Oslo, Paris and Toronto, with more destinations committing to the programme every month.

The Travel Rehearsal concept first began in 2023, as a community collaboration between Emirates, Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, Dubai Airports, the General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs, Dubai Police and Dubai Customs, and several schools and centres for autism in Dubai, whose feedback was invaluable to the process.

The local schools and centres for autism including Safe Center for Autism, The New England Center for Children’s® (NECC®) Clinic, Rashid Center for People of Determination and Dubai Autism Centre were invited to Dubai International (DXB) to experience a simulation of an airport journey. The children and their teachers and carers got to practice checking in, dropping baggage, going through immigration and security, experiencing the hustle and bustle of Duty Free and familiarising themselves with the airport, boarding passes, and the many individuals encountered along the way.

Now on an international level, parents, therapists and teachers involved in the travel rehearsals have reported to Emirates that the experience has been invaluable in helping their child to have a safe and successful flight, by offering the comfort of preparation and familiarity, as well as trained staff to support.

Emirates is introducing the travel rehearsal initiative in many cities on its network, with partnering airports, authorities, local centers, and foundations. Currently, this is not a bookable service and is available on an invitation basis in collaboration with accredited centers.

Emirates is the world’s first Autism Certified Airline™

Emirates has achieved its goal of becoming the world’s first Autism Certified Airline™, by completing the training of 30,000 cabin crew and ground staff to understand and support customers with autism. The new training on autism and sensory awareness equips Emirates’ frontline staff with the understanding and skills to address needs of autistic and sensory sensitive travellers, along with their families. It aims to educate Emirates’ teams on the spectrum of autism, misconceptions and challenges faced, the myriad ways to assist customers dependent on their individual needs, and potential stimulus and triggers that staff should be aware of.

The inaugural designation will be awarded by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES), a leading organization in autism and neurodiversity training and certification. Emirates worked collaboratively with IBCCES for more than a year, to create the training after detailed reviews and a comprehensive audit. Using a data-driven approach, Emirates and IBCCES created a new blueprint for serving passengers with accessibility requirements, encompassing the entire journey – from ground services to in-flight services.

Emirates’ highlights Autism Awareness globally on ice

Throughout April, Emirates highlighted autism awareness to millions of global passengers on its award-winning inflight entertainment system, ice. The content included movies like Temple Grandin, Ezra and The Flight of Bryan, as well as podcasts about Dubai’s autism-friendly mission, documentaries like Copa 71, BBC docuseries Inside Our Autistic Minds, and Carl the Collector – a cartoon about a racoon character with autism.

The Year of Community – Dubai entities work together for Accessible Travel

For many people with autism, air travel is a challenging experience or something to be avoided completely, due to the high level of sensory stimuli that can be involved. A survey on AutismTravel.com revealed that 78% of families are hesitant to travel or visit new locations, and that 94% of respondents would take more vacations if they had access to places where staff are autism-trained and certified. Through global training and international initiatives, Emirates’ mission to make travel more inclusive and accessible for all also supports Dubai’s ambition to become the most accessible destination in the world.

Continuing to drive the accessible travel agenda forward, Emirates works in close collaboration with all its partners, which includes Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) to Dubai Airports, General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs, Dubai Police and Dubai Customs, working together to achieve important goals in inclusive and accessible travel.

Emirates’ Accessible Travel Information

Smartphones are making children borderline autistic,says Dr Iain McGilchrist. #Mobile #Autism

Smartphones and tablets can be of great benefits to children suffering with Autism,we have specified apps from the likes of Apple and Samsung which enables children with Autism to learn,of course this is a specialist subject and children are well supervised in this area,”Children struggle to read emotions and are less empathetic than a generation ago because they spend too much time using tablets and smartphones, leading psychiatrist Dr McGilchrist has warned.”Today its true we do see kids much younger than before with mobile phones and tablets.

In an article in the Daily Telegraph DR McGilchrist says the following

Iain McGilchrist said children as young as five were less able to read facial expressions because of too much interaction with technology.

He added that he had evidence that more pupils were displaying borderline “autistic” behaviour. Dr McGilchrist, a former Oxford literary scholar who retrained in medicine, said he had heard of increasing numbers of teachers who had to explain to their pupils how to make sense of human faces.

However, experts have said children’s lack of ability to read emotions may be down to cultural or language barriers and not just technology.

Mr McGilchrist said he’d heard from teachers who said they now have to explain to their pupils how to make sense of the human face more than a few years ago.

Dr McGilchrist said he has been contacted by teachers of five to seven year olds who have estimated that roughly a third of their pupils find it difficult to keep attention, read faces.

In an interview with the Telegraph, he said: “These teachers have been teaching for 30 years and had found only a couple of people not able to do these simple tasks. People are increasingly finding it difficult to communicate at an emotional level in what appears to be features of autism.”

The author of The Master and his Emissary, which explored the functions of the left and right hemispheres of the brain, added that there is evidence youngsters are “less empathic” than four decades ago.

He said “plausible” theories as to why children are less empathic are to do with the disruptive effects of technology in the family unit.

Dr McGilchrist said: “Children spend more time engaging with machines and with virtual reality than they used to in the past where they don’t have to face the consequences of real life. In virtual environments they don’t have to interpret the subtle cues of real-life environments like when they are playing with children in the woods.

He also said: “Small children are not getting the same individual face-to-face attention as before and when they are at home with the family, the family is multi-tasking and the child is in front of the TV or an iPad screen which is quite worrying.”

“It is hardly surprising that we are not as good as reading human faces and interacting with human beings if we are engaging with the virtual world.”

However, others have said the reasons behind an apparent lack of empathy are complex. Dr Nadja Reissland, a psychologist and senior lecturer at Durham University, said saying children are less able to read human emotion was “a big statement”.

She added: “It could be true but we need to know the background of these children. They might not want to talk about their emotions or might not be used to. They might also come from different cultures where they are normally not supposed to show emotions or English may not be their first language.”

Source

 

Samsung release an App for Autistic Children. Check out #LookAtMe. by @jimboireland #Android

Samsung have just announced a new app for kids suffering with Autism which is really good news,most of us know someone who has Autism or have Autistic children in the family and with technology changing, technology can now help Autistic children learn and interact more been only beneficial to them in the long run.

For now Look At Me is compatible with the following devices.

Samsung Galaxy S3/S4/S5,Samsung Galaxy Note 2/Note 3 /Note 4,Samsung Galaxy Zoom/Zoom2,And the Samsung Galaxy Tab S,so hopefully this will be made more available to a wider range of devices in the coming months.You will need Android 4.0 and upward.

Over 60 million people worldwide suffer from autism. Many struggle to make eye contact and have poor social skills.
However, research has shown that children with autism like to interact with digital devices. Based on this insight, ‘LOOK AT ME’ was developed to help children with autism make better eye contact and improve their facial recognition abilities through digital devices, such as smartphones and smart cameras.
Before you run this program, please download the app user guide and read it carefully.

Scientifically-Endorsed Training Program
This program was developed by Samsung, in collaboration with professors, doctors and UX designers. Seven scientifically-produced missions were created to help children with autism make eye contact, read facial expressions and express their emotions. 20 children trained on the program over eight weeks and *60% of them showed improvement in making eye contact.
*Results are based on parents’ survey.

Rewards
To motivate the children to train on the program every day, we turned this program into a fun and easy-to-use app. Rubies, character cards and points will be awarded to the child based on performance. Music and voice guide are customized to the child’s theme preferences.

Role of Parents
Some missions in this program require parental assistance and participation. Parents should encourage their child’s participation and monitor his/her progress. To motivate their child to perform better, parents should give their child a small reward if he/she completes all of the day’s missions.

Once the app is installed it will then begin downloading files so make sure you have a memory card just in case you do not have enough space on device or current storage..You will then be asked to set up a password and then repeat and then Child mode is activated. From here you will then be given themes to pick from,the enter your name and then gender.

After this is all complete you can then begin.

Download Look At Me from the playstore below and some more in. Source