Deborah Dupre Associates for EcoPeace International
Training & Consultation
Empowering families and communities to succeed in
Helping hurting people that cannot ask for help ~ before hitting bottom
FASD TRAINING PROGRAM
Children with FAS often develop behavior problems that increase their risk of becoming involved with the criminal justice system. (NIAAA report "Strategic Plan To Address Health Disparities," 8 February 2001)TRAINING GOAL:The goal of this training program is to empower community menbers to provide more comprehensive services and advocacy for people with FASD through learning activities, technical assistance and support. The program includes consultation, education and training for community development of effective methods and strategies to maximize learning and reduce risk-taking of children, youth and their parents prenatally exposed to alcohol.FOR WHOM?Elders, schools, individuals, families, service providers and communities working with children affected by FAS and other alcohol related disabilities will benefit from the program. The program is recommended for staff of public and private schools, pre-schools and families with children who do not attend school regularly as well as shire staff and other community agencies and individuals working directly with affected children and youth in settings out of the school arena, such as infant learning programs, early intervention programs, child protective services, Elder council, health professionals, mental health and social service workers and judicial system workers.BACKGROUND: FASD is the leading cause of mental retardation and most people incarcerated have FASD but most individuals with this disease have normal intelligence. They just don't always have the ability to use the intelligence they have. Duprevent, now Deborah Dupre Associates for EcoPeace International) conducted FASD training with Halls Creek, Western Australian Elders and their families. Participants became committed to a community-wide training program and request community support for this to prevent high-risk behavior and justice for those with this primarily invisible disorder.A mother’s drinking alcoholic beverages during pregnancy causes FASD, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder. There is no safe level of drinking during pregnancy. (March of Dimes, American Academy of Pediatrics) Even one drinking binge can cause damage to the developing baby's brain. (Science News, Vol. 158, No. 2, July 8, 2000, p. 28)Researchers Abel and Sokol found that FASD affects about 1 in every 500 babies born in North American and the Western World. [Drug and Alcohol Dependence 19: 51 70, 1987] Leading authorities report that Aboriginal rates are considerably higher that in non-Indigenous populations and that FASD affects most Halls Creek children.Research shows that alcohol damage to the developing baby occurs over a wide continuum, varying according to volume of alcohol ingested, timing during pregnancy, blood alcohol levels, genetics and environmental factors. At the mild end, damage may be loss of some intellectual functioning (IQ), Attention Deficit Disorder, hearing and visual problems, and higher than normal pain tolerance that reduces ability to learn through consequences and makes punitive action ineffective and unjust. At the severe end, damage may be severe loss of intellectual potential, severe vision problems, dyslexia, serious maxilo-facial deformities, dental abnormalities, heart defects, immune system malfunctioning, behavioral problems, Attention Deficit Disorders, Hyper-activity, extreme impulsiveness, poor judgment, memory retention and retrieval difficulty, deafness, little or no capacity for moral judgment or interpersonal empathy, Sociopathic behavior, Epilepsy, tremors, Cerebral Palsy, renal failure, heart failure, death. Most problems associated with prenatal alcohol damage are:· Immature or Inappropriate Behavior· Memory Deficits· Impulse Control Problems· Poor JudgmentThe person's ability to control behavior is erratic and inconsistent. One moment or day they can function “normally.” The next moment or day, they may be out of control, having inappropriate, immature, forgetful, impulsive behavior and make unwise choices because the brain does not function well at all times. “Melt-downs” are not uncommon.Neurological impairment of FAS without physical manifestations is referred to as ARND, or Alcohol Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder and is least recognized. Generally, the terms ARND and FAE are used to define disabilities on the spectrum that do not meet full FAS criteria. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a category that includes FAS and FAE. "ARND is indistinguishable from FAS except from the facial syndrome." [Claire D. Coles, PhD, National Task Force on FAS and FAE, September 20, 2002.]Children whose mothers drank during pregnancy might have no physical signs and may have normal or above normal intelligence but still suffer from prenatal exposure to alcohol. These children have Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE) and probably have problems with school, family and friends because they are not identified as FAE. “Of greatest concern are the effects on brain development and function which include Microcephaly, poor brain organization, mental deficiency, behavioral aberration (especially hyperactivity) and neurological dysfunction (including cerebral palsy)." [Smith DW. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects. Neurotoxicol Teratol 3:127 (1981)]Because these FASD related conditions outlined above cause a cycle of trauma, injustices and often-irreversible damage to person, family and community, Duprevent is committed to empowering communities to address these issues and develop practical, pro-active solutions for prevention and intervention. One of the best ways to start is through community awareness workshops and media campaigning followed by FASD Assessment that Deborah Dupre¢ is equipped to teach so children and youth of all ages can be assessed.DDA Ecopeace International custom tailors training to meet needs of your organization or group! Suggested Agenda for First-Day Training: 9:00 Welcome and Introductions and Pre-Evaluations to determine level of knowledge and specific requests for learning9:30 Interactive Exercises: What It’s Like to Have FASDOverview of Effects of Alcohol and Other Drugs on Pregnant WomenFAE and Central Auditory Processing Disorder: "Stressed Out Students"10:15 Break10:30 PowerPoint Presentation Part 1: Overview of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum DisordersNoon Lunch Break1:00 PowerPoint Presentation Part 2: Assessment and Intervention Strategies That Work2:30 Break3:00 Problem Solving Workshops (small group break out) Factors that affect behavior Obstacles to prevention Case study analysis3:30 Contest (workshop results by group)3:45 Complete FASD Learning for Action Design and Plan for remainder of week program according to needs of participating Elders and agencies Post Evaluations4:00 Certificate Presentation, Community Healing Circle and RefreshmentsSuggested Agenda for Remaining 4-Days of Training: Choose any combination of the following: 1. Early Intervention Strategies: How to Assess FASD in each age groups2. The School Years: How to Help the Alcohol Affected Child Succeed in the Classroom and How to Guide to Caring for Children Prenatally Exposed to Alcohol & Other Drugs at Home 3. Proto-type Assessment Day4. How to Design Court Alternatives for people with FASD5. Sustainable FASD advocacy and service provisionABOUT DEBORAH DUPRE’Deborah Dupre’ is an learning facilitator who conducts workshops and seminars on Prevention and Intervention of Risk Behavior with families and service providers throughout Australia, S.W. Pacific Islands and N.American Indigenous communities. She is Australia’s pioneer of Family Structured Intervention and the culturally modified version she named “Family Healing Circles” with Australian Aborigines, a first in the world. As well as a list of professional development trainings, Deborah conducts trainings with Indigenous and non-Indigenous families to empower them to succeed in guiding loved ones into recovery of Alcohol Dependency. Dupre' brings rich personal understanding and experience to her trainings.Dupre' has conducted intensive independent research and attended several international conferences where she has both presented and learned latest strategies for working successfully with children with FASD. She presented alongside Aboriginal Chiefs and Elders at the international Healing Our Spirit Worldwide Summit, 2004. As Director of Duprevent International and now of DDAEPI, with a background of innovation and leadership. Deborah works with an international Technical Advisory Consortium of international leaders in related fields to bring leading edge technology to families, consults with professionals, writes articles, facilitates Circle support groups, produces workshops and offers classroom presentations to students of all ages. She is co-author of “Before Hitting Bottom” and author of “When There is No Rehab” to be released January 2006. She is member of a number of international organizations focusing on prevention and intervention.With a Bachelor of Science Degree, a Master of Science in Vocational Education and an Education Post-Graduate Diploma in Continuing Education from U.S. and Australian Universities, over 25 years experience working with children and youth at risk and 14 years experience training professionals on alcohol related issues, Deborah is happy to share her secrets to successful intervention in preventing disabling secondary disabilities associated with FAS. Her week of trainings covers all areas of prevention and intervention strategies for alcohol-exposed infants, children, adolescents and adults.
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CRIMINALIZATION OF PERSONS WITH FAS/ARND
Secondary disabilities associated with alcohol exposure in utero often lead to criminalization of these people. Characteristics of persons with effects of prenatal alcohol exposure can lead them to become criminalized. Some of these characteristics are: impulsivity, poor judgment, lack of understanding of cause and effect, difficulty predicting and /or understanding consequences of behavior, inability to learn and generalize from past mistakes, poor and fluctuating memory so confabulation may occur, suggestible/easily manipulated, poor social skills/abilities but a desire to socialize, and difficulty with concepts of time and money (poor math skills.) As well, persons with FAS/E often have better expressive language skills than receptive language skills so they appear to understand more than they actually do. " "The above list of characteristics is a 'recipe for disaster' in terms of how someone could come into contact with the law and how easily they could become a repeat offender......Many persons without full physical signs of FAS but with the neuro-developmental disability (ARND, who come into conflict with the law, are not recognized as disabled and are not assessed to find out their level of ability. When convicted and sent to jail, they are often sexually and physically abused by fellow inmates and/or 'befriendled", end up learning more about criminal acts and will not have made the connection as to why they are even in jail."
Read More of this article at: http://depts.washington.edu/fadu/legalissues/CFAS.pdf
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