Firefighters, EMTs, Paramedics and Law Enforcement Officers are trained to handle emergencies. Now there is a new type of training that needs to be addressed, training for an autism emergency. Autism is one of the fastest growing disabilities in the world and it is not going away. New statistics show that at least 5 million children and adults in the United States have a diagnosis of autism or a related disorder (CDC 2017), like Asperger syndrome or “pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified,” also known as P.D.D.-N.O.S. One out of every 36 children in the U.S. are born with some level of autism (CDC 2024) This is a giant increase in the past decade.

If we are not aware of this disorder and the vast spectrum of symptoms it encompasses, we will not be ready to handle the emergency effectively. A simple uneducated or untrained mistake can result in the loss of a fellow firefighter or even the individual. We can’t afford mistakes like this, especially when the training is now available.

Individuals with autism are so unique and their actions so unpredictable that it’s not only for their safety, but the firefighter and EMTs as well. If you walked into a fire and went to grab the individual, and he or she acted out not in fear of you, but in fear of being touched, you can get hurt as a result. There is no room for mistakes in the field. Everyone’s safety is important.

A 2008 study called “CONTRIBUTING FACTORS TO FIREFIGHTER LINE-OF-DUTY INJURY IN METROPOLITAN FIRE DEPARTMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES” showed the dominant contributing factor to line of duty injuries was lack of situational awareness (37.35%).