Dolphin therapy, a new hope for autistic children

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 08/24/2007 1:28 PM  |  National

Alit Kertaraharja, The Jakarta Post, Singaraja

The children looked happy swimming and playing with a dolphin in the beautiful pool at the Melka Hotel in Lovina Beach, North Bali, on Monday morning.

It was a rare sight for the hotel's guests and staff, who were more used to seeing the dolphins in the open sea off Lovina Beach.

""We are having a special workshop for children with autism. This is called dolphin therapy,"" said Dr. Upi Kesumawati, who was watching the children.

Autism is brain development disorder characterized by impairments in social interaction, communication and restricted and repetitive behavior, all exhibited before a child reaches three years old. These characteristics distinguish autism from mild to severe autism disorders.

Dr. Melly Budiman, a child psychiatrist specializing in autism, said there more than a thousand children in the country were known to have mild to severe autism.

Autism was only detected in the country in the middle of the l980s, with limited places for medical and behavior therapies. With the rapid development of medical research and communication technology, many more children in the world, including Indonesia, have since been diagnosed with autism.

""We have seen people's awareness increasing and more medical therapies offered to help children with autism reach their greatest potential. Dolphin therapy is one way and we hope that it will benefit autistic children, their parents and society as well,"" Dr. Budiman said on the sideline of a seminar and workshop that started on Sunday (Aug. 19) and ran until Aug. 23.

Autism is still regarded as something of a medical enigma. A large number of medical and behavior treatments are being developed to find the answer to this medical puzzle. The current therapies include occupational therapy to improve motor skills, behavior and speech therapy and many others.

""Dolphin therapy has been used to help disabled children, down syndrome children and adults with strokes and other diseases gain healthier lives,"" Dr. Budiman said.

The seminar and workshop presented a number of speakers including Dr. Budiman, Dr. Pradewi Indriyastuti, Dr. Muniyati Ismail, founder of school for autistic children in Palembang, South Sumatra, and Agus Cahyadi, an expert in bio-acoustics.

""There are a lot more therapies and treatments for children with autism, such as multiple-food allergy tests, toxic metal tests, brain examinations and comprehensive digestive examinations. But they are very costly and not many parents can afford to have their children tested,"" she said.

""It is expected that dolphin therapy could become an alternative and cost-effective treatment for these children,"" Dr. Budiman said, adding that he hoped the government would pay more attention to the issue.

Dr. Indroyono, chairman of the Marine and Fishery Ministry's Center for Marine Technology, added that Indonesia had an abundant number of dolphins in its territorial waters.

""There should be ways to integrate medical, marine and technology experts to develop various programs to help many people especially children with autism,"" Indroyono said.

Carla Henco from Bunbury Dolphin Therapy said the aim of the therapy was to increase sensory activities. It takes place in a pool with captive or semi-captive dolphins and therapists who assist the children. They are asked to swim, touch, feed or pat the animals.

There is ongoing research in universities and dolphin centers around the world.

""I expect that the therapy will be applicable here and will benefit a lot of people,"" Henco said.

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