What to know
- The Autism Alliance of Canada is calling for a more coordinated emergency response system for missing vulnerable people, including Autistic people.
- A new report identifies gaps in Canada’s current approach, which relies on Amber Alerts for child abductions and local missing-person alerts that vary by region.
- The organization says Canada could build on proposed systems such as Silver Alerts for missing seniors with dementia and the proposed Indigo Alert for missing vulnerable people.
- Recommendations include better coordination between police, search and rescue teams and families, as well as standardized training for first responders.
- The report also highlights the need to balance timely alerts with privacy protections for missing people.
In light of ongoing discussions about a silver alert for missing seniors with dementia, the Autism Alliance of Canada is calling on the federal government to modernize the system for safer response to missing vulnerable groups, including those on the spectrum.
Earlier this week, the Autism Alliance of Canada released a report outlining steps needed to improve the country’s emergency response system to when missing vulnerable people face risk of serious harm.
The report comes after the organization united people on the autism spectrum, families with lived experience, search and rescue experts, community organizations, first responders, and Members of Parliament during a national roundtable about emergency response on Aug. 27.
As explained by Autism Alliance of Canada’s Executive Director Jonathan Lai, Canada currently does not have a specific emergency response alert for missing vulnerable persons. Instead, the country relies on Amber alerts for kidnapping cases, and local alerts for missing people, which vary from region to region.
But the report identifies significant gaps in this system.
“There’s opportunities to make these changes, and kind of take an autism disability lens in consideration when we’re building this new system,” Lai told Now Toronto.
“Technology is changing every day and it’s been a long time since these alert systems have been updated in terms of the infrastructure. There’s a lot of opportunity to build a better quality of these systems and these are all safety nets that we all want to have safer communities and safer outcomes across the country.”
Specific alerts for vulnerable persons
The federal government is currently in the process of passing the Bill C-263, the Silver Alert National Framework Act, a legislation proposal that would establish geo-targeted Silver alerts (similar to Amber Alerts), specifically designed to locate missing seniors with dementia or other cognitive impairments.
In light of these discussions, the Autism Alliance of Canada says a similar system specifically implemented in response to other vulnerable groups disappearances, including those in the autistic spectrum, could also improve emergency response.
One of the approaches discussed by the group included the implementation of a system similar to the Indigo alert, a proposed system of alerts in case of missing vulnerable persons.
“In our roundtable the goal wasn’t really to find consensus what’s the best alert but I think it’s to say [that] some of this is already coming through legislation, [and ask], Is there a better way to build this into a more comprehensive system that allows for missing vulnerable people, whoever they are, whatever their diagnosis is?” Lai said.
Better coordination between emergency respondents and families
The group also suggests that the system could include better coordination between emergency respondents, such as police or search and rescue groups, and the family of missing persons.
As explained by Lai, vulnerable persons, including those on the autism spectrum, often face unique differences when it comes to communication and sensibilities.
According to him, if emergency respondents were to learn more about each individual’s needs and differences from their families, they could offer a more appropriate response to that specific individual, rather than trying to enforce a one-size-fits-all approach.
“[For some vulnerable people] distress can [come from] a whole bunch of people shouting your name, shining lights, and somebody’s response to those things may cause them to almost put themselves in a more harmful situation,” Lai explained
“There’s certain things that we need to think about in terms of risk, in terms of profile, and their sensitivities. Then, we want to build an inclusive system for all people.”
First responder training and privacy considerations
Autism Alliance of Canada’s also outlines a need for more comprehensive training for those who work with emergency response.
According to Lai, although alerts can be helpful, police, search and rescue crews, and others involved in emergency response should also receive standard neurodivergency training to be prepared to approach vulnerable individuals and conduct searches more effectively.
In addition, the expert says privacy considerations are also missing from the current system, and should be discussed before another alert comes into play.
“You don’t want to share too much information out there and then that person [is] found, and now their personal information has been all over the web,” Lai said.
