DENTON COUNTY, Texas — A Texas father of an autistic boy is pushing for cities to implement a program that would place a decal on an autistic person’s vehicle or home to warn first responders of a patient’s condition.
Brent Carmichael told KHOU that his biggest fear for his son, Artez Carmichael, is for him to come face to face with responders in an emergency and the responders not to understand what they’re dealing with.
Carmichael created the sticker through his 4-U Academy, a non-profit organization that helps families touched by autism.
“If there’s an emblem, or there’s a way an officer once he stops you or a firefighter who comes to a fire, sees something in the window, they automatically know that there’s someone with autism in that vehicle or home, [and] their training would kick in,” he told KHOU.
He also supports creating a voluntary autism 911 registry for families. During an emergency call, dispatchers can give police and fire valuable information about the person.
“How do you make sure both are safe?” Carmichael said. “You educate and you make aware and you give strageties. You provide ways that they can recognize and respond, because then you can save lives.”