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HOSPITAL FOR SPECIAL CARE 6 A leader in its field Inpatient Services A leader in its field, e Autism Center at HSC has his- torically risen to each occasion to meet community needs, most recently with its eight-bed inpatient unit for 10 to 21-year-olds who have exhausted other levels of treatment, are a risk to themselves, or who have shown a decline in abilities. e Autism Inpatient Center opened in 2015, proposed by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in 2010. With a rise in autism spectrum disorder rates — especially in boys — families would have to travel out-of-state for the kind of treatment now offered at HSC. It's the only such facility in Connecti- cut and only one of 10 in the U.S. e team focusing on each patient is expansive, offer- ing individualized and interdisciplinary care, said John Molteni, Ph.D., director of autism services. Another impor- tant component in the network of treatment and care, he said: families. "e family involvement is very important in the process," said Molteni, as families need to implement the plan at home and be part of the solution. Outpatient Services e HSC Autism Outpatient Center has first-in-the- nation status as a Patient-Centered Specialty Practice, or PCSP. e National Committee for Quality Assurance has recognized HSC's Autism Center for myriad initiatives, the value of which its patients and patients' families experience every day. "We are always enhancing services based on needs, see- ing if it's a viable option for us," said Ami Desai, director of outpatient administration. "We try to be the community's answer" — a hub, forming community partnerships in or- der to accomplish that goal. Seeing about 5,000 patients a year, HSC autism outpa- tient services offer complete care, including occupational therapy, developmental pediatrics, diagnostics, speech ther- apy, psychology and psychiatry, among others. e hospital works to continuously improve as more is learned about the autism spectrum. For example, HSC has added a marriage-counseling com- ponent; a licensed therapist meets with couples who have children on the spectrum. "We see our role as a patient- centered resource," she said, "coordinating all services … all of it is in the universe of the autism spectrum." Spectrum of Kindness To help tell the stories behind the faces and support Au- tism Awareness Month, Hospital for Special Care has cre- ated an online community and resource to help promote a better understanding of caring for children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). e goal of the initiative is to gather and share positive, real-world accounts of the everyday hurdles and joys asso- ciated with autism that will inspire others to be more in- formed, tolerant and giving of themselves to help make it easier for those living with ASD. rough Spectrum of Kindness, the public is invited to share stories of kindness and inspire others by uploading stories, videos or photos — whether it's an act of kindness in a potentially stressful public setting, a teacher that has gone that extra mile or a family that has been helped by an extraordinary caregiver. n THE AUTISM CENTER AT HSC