David Sternfield thinks that in a time when about one in every 150 U.S. children is diagnosed with autism, emergency officials should know how to respond to them.

The Autism Legislation Project, Sternfield’s nonprofit organization, made sure that Villa Park emergency officials learned how to do just that April 18. A Law Enforcement and Other First Responder Training curriculum was held so that police, fire and medical officials could understand how to respond to different levels of children with autism.

Sternfield, whose oldest daughter has autism, said the event came about after meeting with Susan Tybon, executive director of the Chicago chapter of the Autism Speaks organization.

“It came about as a result of my own personal experience through introducing my child to law-enforcement officials, and she said she would be interested in doing something like that,” Sternfield said.

Georgia Winson, chief of the Autism Program of Illinois; Maria Conforti-Prato, manager for the Autism Center for Excellence at Giants Steps Illinois; and Chicago police officer Jerry Nelson, who has a child with autism, also agreed to participate, Sternfield said.
The session focused on what characteristics officials should look out for when responding to an emergency situation, Sternfield, a lawyer in Chicago, said.

“It’s about recognizing individuals with autism — some of the characteristics and mannerisms that might be typical. We discussed strategies and suggestions about how to react,” Sternfield said. “If you come in and it’s a delicate situation, ... you don’t want to be finding out what that is on the ride over. You want to have insight. ... It’s important to have basic knowledge. ... In order to properly service your community, you need to be trained.”

Besides the speeches, videos also were shown at the event, Sternfield said. Villa Park Deputy Police Chief Bob Budig said he learned a lot.

“It was a worthwhile event to the point that I was educated to the behavior of an autistic person, and I learned how to respond to that,” Budig said. “I learned a lot from that.”