A young person with autism and pica – case study

Abstract

In the below article we present the urgently needed adaptation of the school environment of a young person living with autism and pica; the process is still under development according to the changes in the pupil’s daily behaviour. We briefly present the main attributes of both the pica and the subject pupil, and we further discuss when and how the consumption of the non-edible objects first appeared, how the intensity of this behaviour has changed during the years, and its status. The intensifying of the pica deserved immediate and large-scale intervention whose areas and steps are detailed in the article. During the process the team strived for introducing the changes one by one, progressively. However, at some occasions the preservation of the physical health was more important than the application of the autism treating guidelines.

Keywords: autism spectrum, pica, physical structure, visual schedule, visually structured work, behaviour management