About Irabina
Mission
Irabina is a specialist early childhood intervention service that provides family
centred programs from the time of diagnosis to school entry for children and their families
who are challenged by Autism Spectrum Disorder and who reside predominantly in the Eastern
Metropolitan Region of Melbourne.
Irabina is focused on achieving the highest possible functional abilities necessary for a pre-school child to engage in
his/her life roles.
It is a centre of excellence that offers a multi-disciplinary approach to each child and
his family and educates the wider community about Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Vision
Irabina Childhood Autism Services is a multi-disciplinary
team of professionals who along with parents are committed to providing timely,
accessible, specialised and individually tailored services to meet the needs of
children and families challenged by Autism Spectrum Disorder and the
information needs of the broader community.
Irabina provides quality programs of education, family
support, occupational therapy and speech pathology with the goal of successful
community inclusion. Irabina's aim is to continue to develop innovative and
effective programs delivered upon referral in an environment that encompasses
compassion, best practice and ethics in all our actions.
Family Centred Practice
Irabina is a Family Centred Program. What do we mean by Family Centred Practice?
Belief system about families:
- Children live within a family and therefore they can only be understood within the context of
the family.
- Families must be involved in the decision making process about their child.
- Families know their own child best.
- All families have skills and abilities as well as needs and concerns.
- Families need to be
understood within the context of their social and community networks.
- The family as a unit
is as important as the identified child within the family.
- Families have the
right to request who attends the meetings regarding their child.
Belief system about professionals:
- Professionals and
parents work together in a partnership to identify concerns and enhance the
child's abilities.
- Professionals support families in identifying and addressing the family concerns.
- Professional will allow the family to participate in early intervention with their child
as much as they desire. (Bailey, McWilliams and Winton, 1992)
Belief system about service delivery
- Services that might
have previously been geared almost exclusively toward children must have
flexibility, expertise, and resources to meet the needs of other family
members, as those needs relate to the child's development. (Public Law 99-457)
Australian Early childhood
Intervention Association, 2000.
In Partnership with Parents
Irabina adheres to the philosophy of Family Centred Practice as advocated by the
Department of Human Services.
Irabina provides a Family Support Plan, which includes:
- Visits at home and interview times at Irabina
- Partnership with parents in developing their child's Individual Program and Family
Service & Support Plan
- Support with Inclusion Programs in Day-Care Centres, Play-Groups,
Kindergartens & School
- Support and information for care-givers and extended family
- Information about other
services or agencies that can provide support
- Information about Autism Spectrum Disorder and related issues, through discussion,
educational programs and resources
- Parents groups, both social and educational.
