Johnson Center for Child Health and Development
Encyclopedia
The Johnson Center for Child Health and Development (formerly known as "Thoughtful House Center for Children" or "Thoughtful House") is a non-profit organization working to advance the understanding of childhood development through clinical care, research, and education. Located in Austin
, Texas, the Johnson Center offers diagnostic services, healthcare services, behavioral therapy, educational assessments, community outreach and education. The center continues to have a diverse research program, including clinical research studies and biological research under the direction of Laura Hewitson
.
The Center’s research program seeks to answer questions related to developmental disorders. The Center was named in honor of Betty Wold Johnson, in recognition of her ongoing generous support for child health and development, as well as her exceptional commitment to philanthropy.
, who was appointed executive director. Charlie Ball, former Dell
executive, and his wife, Troy, donated money to the group as a tribute to their son with autism. Country singer Emily Robison has been a board member and her sister, Martie, acts as an advisor, along with her husband, Gareth. The Dixie Chicks
have appeared at benefits, including playing in the Thoughtful House Celebrity Softball Game in November 2005.
The first clinical research study to be published by Thoughtful House examined the effects of hyperbaric oxygen treatment on children with autism
. The study found no consistent effect with this treatment. As the organization continued to develop, it added a number of new practices: Applied Behavioral
Analyses, Therapeutic Nutrition
, Functional Behavioral Assessments
, and Therapy.
In 2010 the Wyndham
Garden Austin Hotel opened a wing specifically designed for children on the Autism spectrum. The hotel partnered with Thoughtful House to design the hotel rooms and educate the staff about what to expect. According to a National Geographic article, “these rooms have made a huge difference for families that usually have to do so much extra planning to get to a destination.” Peter Bell, executive vice president for Autism Speaks
, stated in a USAToday article that he hopes other hotels will catch on, and that he plans to contact national hotel chains about following suit. The center continues to inform and support the developmental disorder community through webinars, classes, and local events, as well has host several free events for children in the community.
, was fined $5,000 in 2005 by the Texas Medical board for failing to report a Florida Medical Board action that cited him for failure to document continuing medical education hours. Another former collaborator, Dr. Bryan Jepson, was fined $1,000 in 2005 for allowing information to appear on a website that suggested he was entitled to practice medicine in Texas before he received a Texas Medical License.
Dr. Jepson is known for his theory that “there’s a genetic susceptibility for autism,” and “children who are born with genetic susceptibility for autism have trouble detoxifying.” In his book, Changing the Course of Autism, Dr. Jepson included a chapter about chelation therapy
, an unproved therapy for autism based on a discredited hypothesis that mercury poisoning leads to autism.
Dr. Andrew Wakefield
, who started with the Thoughtful House in 2004, resigned from the organization in February 2010 after a British medical journal retracted his research on the MMR vaccine
, and he was sanctioned by the UK General Medical Council
Wakefield did not conduct his research on the MMR vaccine while collaborating with the Thoughtful House. The Johnson Center does not continue to collaborate with Wakefield.
Austin
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...
, Texas, the Johnson Center offers diagnostic services, healthcare services, behavioral therapy, educational assessments, community outreach and education. The center continues to have a diverse research program, including clinical research studies and biological research under the direction of Laura Hewitson
Laura Hewitson
Laura Hewitson is a British-born primate researcher noted for her work in the fields of reproductive biology and behavior. She is an Affiliate Scientist at the Washington National Primate Research Center in Seattle, WA. Additionally, she is Research Director of Johnson Center for Child Health and...
.
The Center’s research program seeks to answer questions related to developmental disorders. The Center was named in honor of Betty Wold Johnson, in recognition of her ongoing generous support for child health and development, as well as her exceptional commitment to philanthropy.
History
The Johnson Center's predecessor organization, Thoughtful House, was established in 2004, by a group of parents and professionals, including Troy and Charlie Ball, Kelly Barnhill, Bryan Jepson, Jane Johnson, and many others, to further the work of Andrew WakefieldAndrew Wakefield
Andrew Wakefield is a British former surgeon and medical researcher, known as an advocate for the discredited claim that there is a link between the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, autism and bowel disease, and for his fraudulent 1998 research paper in support of that claim.Four years after...
, who was appointed executive director. Charlie Ball, former Dell
Dell
Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...
executive, and his wife, Troy, donated money to the group as a tribute to their son with autism. Country singer Emily Robison has been a board member and her sister, Martie, acts as an advisor, along with her husband, Gareth. The Dixie Chicks
Dixie Chicks
The Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
have appeared at benefits, including playing in the Thoughtful House Celebrity Softball Game in November 2005.
The first clinical research study to be published by Thoughtful House examined the effects of hyperbaric oxygen treatment on children with autism
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
. The study found no consistent effect with this treatment. As the organization continued to develop, it added a number of new practices: Applied Behavioral
Applied Behavior Analysis
Applied behavior analysis is a science that involves using modern behavioral learning theory to modify behaviors. Behavior analysts reject the use of hypothetical constructs and focus on the observable relationship of behavior to the environment...
Analyses, Therapeutic Nutrition
Therapeutic food
Therapeutic foods are foods designed for specific, usually nutritional, therapeutic purposes as a form of dietary supplement. The primary examples of therapeutic foods are used for emergency feeding of malnourished children or to supplement the diets of persons with special nutritional...
, Functional Behavioral Assessments
Functional analysis
Functional analysis is a branch of mathematical analysis, the core of which is formed by the study of vector spaces endowed with some kind of limit-related structure and the linear operators acting upon these spaces and respecting these structures in a suitable sense...
, and Therapy.
In 2010 the Wyndham
Wyndham
-Localities:*City of Wyndham, an LGA in Victoria, Australia*Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley, a LGA in Western Australia, Australia*Wyndham Hills, Pennsylvania, an opulent community in York County, Pennsylvania, United States*Wyndham, New South Wales...
Garden Austin Hotel opened a wing specifically designed for children on the Autism spectrum. The hotel partnered with Thoughtful House to design the hotel rooms and educate the staff about what to expect. According to a National Geographic article, “these rooms have made a huge difference for families that usually have to do so much extra planning to get to a destination.” Peter Bell, executive vice president for Autism Speaks
Autism Speaks
Autism Speaks is the world's largest autism advocacy organization that sponsors autism research and conducts awareness and outreach activities aimed at families, governments, and the public. It was founded in February 2005 by Bob Wright, vice chairman of General Electric, and by his wife Suzanne, a...
, stated in a USAToday article that he hopes other hotels will catch on, and that he plans to contact national hotel chains about following suit. The center continues to inform and support the developmental disorder community through webinars, classes, and local events, as well has host several free events for children in the community.
Controversy
One of Thoughtful House’s former collaborating physicians, Dr. Arthur KrigsmanArthur Krigsman
Arthur Krigsman, MD, is a pediatrician and gastroenterologist best known for his controversial and widely-criticized research in which he attempted to prove that the MMR vaccine caused diseases, especially autism...
, was fined $5,000 in 2005 by the Texas Medical board for failing to report a Florida Medical Board action that cited him for failure to document continuing medical education hours. Another former collaborator, Dr. Bryan Jepson, was fined $1,000 in 2005 for allowing information to appear on a website that suggested he was entitled to practice medicine in Texas before he received a Texas Medical License.
Dr. Jepson is known for his theory that “there’s a genetic susceptibility for autism,” and “children who are born with genetic susceptibility for autism have trouble detoxifying.” In his book, Changing the Course of Autism, Dr. Jepson included a chapter about chelation therapy
Chelation therapy
Chelation therapy is the administration of chelating agents to remove heavy metals from the body. For the most common forms of heavy metal intoxication—those involving lead, arsenic or mercury—the standard of care in the United States dictates the use of dimercaptosuccinic acid...
, an unproved therapy for autism based on a discredited hypothesis that mercury poisoning leads to autism.
Dr. Andrew Wakefield
Andrew Wakefield
Andrew Wakefield is a British former surgeon and medical researcher, known as an advocate for the discredited claim that there is a link between the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, autism and bowel disease, and for his fraudulent 1998 research paper in support of that claim.Four years after...
, who started with the Thoughtful House in 2004, resigned from the organization in February 2010 after a British medical journal retracted his research on the MMR vaccine
MMR vaccine
The MMR vaccine is an immunization shot against measles, mumps, and rubella . It was first developed by Maurice Hilleman while at Merck in the late 1960s....
, and he was sanctioned by the UK General Medical Council
General Medical Council
The General Medical Council registers and regulates doctors practising in the United Kingdom. It has the power to revoke or restrict a doctor's registration if it deems them unfit to practise...
Wakefield did not conduct his research on the MMR vaccine while collaborating with the Thoughtful House. The Johnson Center does not continue to collaborate with Wakefield.