AngelSense has announced it is donating GPS units to 30 autism families in need. The value of each unit is $629, and applications will be accepted throughout Autism Awareness Month.
“Wandering is ranked as one of the most stressful behaviors among parents of children with autism,” says Nery Ben-Azar, co-founder of AngelSense. “AngelSense is designed to help reduce wandering incidents by allowing parents to closely monitor their child’s well-being at all times.”
AngelSense provides a text notification to caregivers when their child arrives and departs from a specific place, and for every unexpected car stop and location change. Caregivers can also access their child’s whereabouts through the app.
“Many families need a monitoring solution that fits their child’s needs, and we have made it our mission to help these families,” Ben-Azar added.
Wandering behaviors are common in the autism community. A 2012 study in Pediatrics found that almost half of children with autism are at risk or wandering or bolting away from safe settings, yet a third could not recite their name, address, and phone number.
“Because autism affects both communication and cognitive function, the risk of harm for any missing child with autism increases significantly,” says Wendy Fournier, president of the National Autism Association. “Personal locator devices may be one essential tool for those at risk.” She added, “No solution is 100% effective, so we continue to encourage families to adopt a well-rounded, multi-layered approach, which includes securing the home, alerting police & trusted neighbors of wandering tendencies, teaching safety skills, and addressing underlying reasons for the behavior.”
AngelSense notes that priority will be given to applications supported by a letter from a family support service agency or any law enforcement agency. Chosen families will be contacted by Monday, May 9, 2016.
To apply, visit https://www.angelsense.com/autismawareness/
For a full list of wandering prevention tips, visit https://nationalautismassociation.org/wandering-quick-tips/
