Kyrgyz Republic Eyes Moulding Autism Specialists

SERDANG (Selangor, Malaysia), April 23 (Bernama) -- The Kyrgyz Republic will start training doctors and specialists in autism due to the rising number of cases in that country, said its First Lady, Dr Raisa Atambaeva. She noted that the number of autistic children in her country was very low, but the figure was currently growing. Dr Atambaeva said her country had no specialised centres for autism due to the low number and that patients were treated by those who were not specifically trained in autism. "Over the last two to three years, there was specific attention given to holding round-table discussions on the organisation of such centres for autism and training of specialists, specifically medical specialists for autistic children,” she told a media interview here. Dr Atambaeva, wife of the Kyrgyz Republic president, is in Malaysia for the International Seminar on Autism 2014 which was opened by Prime Minister Najib Razak at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC) in Putrajaya Tuesday. She said parents of autistic children in the Kyrgyz Republic were also keen on getting involved in the setting up of centres related to autism. She lauded the convening of the international seminar on autism, currently underway in Malaysia, saying it answered the need to focus more attention on autism worldwide. "Events like this will make people more aware of the problems linked to autism throughout the world, apart from enabling the sharing of experiences with other countries," she added. Dr Atambaeva was one of the key participants at a special session called 'Voices of First Ladies' which took place in conjunction with the two-day seminar which ends Wednesday. With the theme, 'Autism is not a Tragedy, Ignorance is', the seminar focuses on the importance of implementing high-quality intervention programme for autistic children. The Malaysian prime minister's wife, Rosmah Mansor is patron of the seminar which has drawn over 1,000 local and foreign participants. -- BERNAMA