MARSHALL — Studies show that children with autism typically do better when intensive interventions happen at an early age. With the number of children being diagnosed with autism on the rise and access to specialized services in the area on the decline, a new autism resource — Behavioral Dimensions — is looking to address all of those concerns as it expands its support to include the Marshall area.

Jay O’Neill is co-owner and president of Behavioral Dimensions, a private company specializing in treating autism and related conditions in Minnesota for the past 21 years. He said early intervention is vital.

“Research says getting them in and working with them at a very early age, you’ll have the best outcomes,” O’Neill said. “So we’re primarily focusing on preschool age. We use what’s called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), so everything is really data-driven. The name of our program is called Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention.”

An informational meeting explaining the resources that will be available is scheduled for May 14, from 6-7:30 p.m., at the Greater Minnesota Family Services SEED Building located at 308 North Third Street in Marshall. Topics covered include: what ABA is, who is eligible for services, what the services look like, how they are paid for and how frequently the services are provided.

“Teaching communication skills is big,” O’Neill said. “Kids with autism are often missing communication and social skills, along with appropriate play, so our intervention and curriculum is really designed to teach the kids the skills that they’re missing. And everything we do is right in the family’s home. We work 1 on 1 and we also provide a lot of parent support and training.”

O’Neill explained that their services were very intensive.

“It’s a minimum of 20 hours a week that the kids get,” he said. “We’ve worked with kids for 2-4 years and up — we try to get them as ready for kindergarten and first grade as possible. Some families, we’ll stay on as less intense support. We’ll kind of systematically face our services over time. But we’ll also stay as long as needed.”

While there should be “very little out-of-pocket costs,” O’Neill said the best part about their services is that it works.

“The results are really remarkable,” O’Neill said. “There are kids who have gone into school and have had little or no assistance. It’s a pretty remarkable science. It’s fun to be part of.”

Dianne Beckendorf has spent nearly 25 years as a community advocate for autism. She believes education, training and awareness are instrumental in improving the lives of people affected by autism.

“Over the years, I have been touched by the lives of those I have met on the journey with autism,” she said. “Families in our community are affected by autism and resources are limited for them to utilize and strengthen the skills of their children.”

Beckendorf said she was introduced to ABA therapy by Behavioral Dimensions more than 20 years ago. The training allowed her to use the curriculum and very specific teaching techniques to help support Marshall area children and adults on the autism spectrum.

Beckendorf said she’s seen remarkable benefits, citing research that supports the effectiveness of an ABA program.

“A number of studies have shown that almost half of the children receiving an intensive ABA program succeed in regular education, require minimal or no support at all from specialists and often become indistinguishable from their peers,” Beckendorf said.

O’Neill acknowledged that there is a lot of misinformation out there about autism. Misinformation will be addressed at the information meeting, he said.

“There are no real answers yet (as to the cause of autism),” he said. “They’re looking into some genetic ties yet, but nothing has specifically been proven yet. It is not the immunizations the kids are getting. There are still people who believe that. But it is proven scientifically that it does not.”

Autism appears to be on the rise.

“A few years ago, the prevalence was 1 in 150, but now it’s actually 1 in 68 who have some type of autism,” O’Neill said. “It’s a combination of it just happening more often and getting diagnosed more often.”

Autism Spectrum Disorder Foundation (ASDF) reports that autism is much more common in today’s society than parents might think. Back in the day, there was little to no help available and children were left to work independently and parents were left to pay extensively for private tutoring and assistance — often without results — according to ASDF.

Fortunately, huge strides have been made in the past decade. The ASDF also found that early detection is key in helping a child with autism live a more normal life in society.

Initially, Behavioral Dimensions anticipates serving clients within a 20-30 mile range of Marshall. But as they grow their services, they may expand to other areas. O’Neill said services may also expand to include services to older children in the future as well.

“Our hope would be to expand services to support older kids,” he said. “Our program is really focused on early intervention, but then as we grow, we could expand our services to older kids.”

O’Neill said he understands the frustration regarding the lack of access to services

I called a hospital in Sioux Falls (South Dakota) and they were saying there’s over a year wait just to get in and get a diagnosis,” O’Neill said. “Even in the Twin Cities, it’s a 6 month wait. It can be a frustrating thing for parents. Then there’s getting signed up with insurances. Having a child with autism can be difficult, but there’s also all the hoops to jump through with all the bureaucracy and paperwork.”

O’Neill noted that there is a “huge provider shortage” in Minnesota. A recent meeting presented by Southwest Health and Human Services found that a lot of parents expressed the need for services but that there were no providers available, he said.

Founded in 1997, Behavioral Dimensions currently serves the metro area, parts of southern Minnesota and outstate Minnesota around Duluth, St. Cloud and Alexandria. While the need has been there, O’Neill said that finding qualified staff has been one of the deterrents in expanding to southwest Minnesota in the past.

“That’s one thing that prevents us from expanding, is the ability to hire and retain staff,” he said. “The reimbursement rates are pretty low. Like many fields, somebody needs to have an advanced degree to make more money, but the entry level positions don’t pay very well.”

A new state program specifically for children with autism and related conditions is just getting off the ground, however, O’Neill said, adding that it will be very beneficial to families.

“It’s called Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Interventions (EIDBI) and it’s a new program that we’re going to be using,” O’Neill said. “It is a new funding source. It will help improve services to the families.”

The May 14 information meeting is free to attend. Parents and family members are invited to come learn about the autism services that are coming to the Marshall area. Children are also encouraged to attend as there will be areas for them to play.