Kids Brain Health Network is delighted to congratulate Dr. Sheila Laredo, KBHN Chair of the Board of Directors, and Dr. Evdokia Anagnostou, KBHN associate investigator, and their peers on the Ontario Autism Program Advisory Committee who were recently awarded the Gerry Bloomfield Award by Autism Ontario.

The Ontario Autism Program Advisory Committee is an advisory group whose members range from parents and caregivers to clinical experts to leaders in autism-related organizations. They collaborate with the Ontario government to provide advice on key elements of the Ontario Autism Program, which provides crucial services to families of children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

The group was presented with the Gerry Bloomfield Award, which recognizes volunteers and professionals who work to improve the quality of life for person or persons with ASD. They were commended for their outstanding engagement and collaboration with volunteers, professionals and government leaders.

Members of the committee included Dr. Laredo, the KBHN Board Chair and the chief-of-staff at the Women’s College Hospital in Toronto, and Dr. Anagnostou, an associate KBHN investigator who was involved in KBHN’s ASD research group.

Dr. Laredo says that her work at KBHN inspires the progress that she strives for on the committee.

“My work with KBHN reminds me every day that the most important thing we can accomplish is to use our evidence to positively impact the lives of kids with neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families,” she says.

“Working on the OAP Advisory Committee has been an opportunity to do exactly that, by creating an evidence-based program that has the potential to impact many young Ontarians with autism spectrum disorders. It is an honour to do this work on their behalf.”

Congratulations Dr. Laredo and Dr. Anagnostou!