Article 5: Meet the team
April was National Autism Awareness Month. Four autism articles have already been published, brought to you by VFAAB (Vietnamese Family Autism Awareness Board) and HopeCentral Pediatrics and Behavioral Health (HopeCentral) and funded by a Best Starts for Kids King County grant. HopeCentral believes that health extends far beyond the walls of our clinic, and by investing in community work through VFAAB’s Autism Awareness campaign, we desire to cultivate a supportive community. VFAAB is a collaborative group of families of children with ASD/DD (Autism Spectrum Disorder/Developmental Delay), professionals serving these children, and interested community members. VFAAB seeks to decrease stigma associated with diagnosis by raising awareness of ASD/DD in linguistically and culturally appropriate ways. VFAAB creates an inclusive, warm, and welcoming space where parents and their children can connect with other parents and healthcare workers in the community, decreasing stigma by fostering a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of families with children on the autism spectrum.
In the Vietnamese community, Autism is often a hidden problem. Vietnamese parents often shelter their autistic children because of their difficult behaviors and unusual ways of speaking. We want to emphasize that children with Autism have special strengths and make significant contributions to their community and society. As a result of these articles, we hope the Vietnamese community in King County will come together to offer a more encouraging acceptance and support for families who have children with ASD.
We want to introduce the VFAAB team:
Dr. Thanh Kirkpatrick, M.D., M.P.H., Pediatrician, VFAAB Director
Dr. Thanh Kirkpatrick, MD, MPH, came to the United States as a refugee from Vietnam. She graduated from Pomona College with a degree in anthropology and received her Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Vermont and her Master’s in Public Health in Health Administration from Loma Linda University. She completed her pediatrics residency at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She currently serves as director of the Vietnamese Family Autism Advisory Board helping families connect to therapeutic and support services across the care system. She was appointed to the Washington State Developmental Disabilities Council in 2017 and currently serves as a council member. Dr. Kirkpatrick is a pediatrician at HopeCentral Pediatrics and Behavioral Health, a clinic designated by the Washington Healthcare Authority as an Autism Center of Excellence to provide a range of services for families with children on the Autism Spectrum. She provides pediatric care for the linguistically and economically diverse community surrounding the clinic in Southeast Seattle. Dr. Kirkpatrick has a passion for educating the Vietnamese community about autism and developmental delay and serving immigrant patients.
LeVinh Tran, Patient Navigator
LeVinh Tran has six years of experience working with Vietnamese families who have children with disabilities. LeVinh is able to support and care for families as they navigate and determine the best short and long term care models for their children. Some of the resources that she is able to offer assistance with are: finding Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) providers and navigating waitlists, scheduling specialist and therapy appointments and assisting in Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) application, Ben’s Fund application, and Individualized Education Program (IEP) support. LeVinh leads a Vietnamese family support group that meets virtually on the 3rd Wednesday of the month from 4:00-5:30 PM for parents with children from birth to 6 years of age. The focus of this group is to educate parents about autism and the services available to help provide a better outcome. If you are a Vietnamese family with a young child with autism and would like to join the group, please email Tammy Dang at tdang@hopecentralhealth.org.
Vietnamese parent support group for children birth to six years old
3rd Wednesday of the month
Meets by Google Meet
Time: 4:00-5:30 PM
Tammy Dang, Program Manager
Tammy Dang has experience working for King County as a Case Manager in the Aging and Disabilities Department and is fluent in Vietnamese and English. She is committed to assessing the needs of families with children with autism within the Vietnamese Community and finding ways to support and connect them to helpful resources. Tammy leads VFAAB’s general family support group that meets monthly on the 4th Wednesday of the month from 4:00-5:30 PM. These meetings are for Vietnamese families with children with developmental delays to build community, learn about autism and services available and share learned experiences with each other. If you would like to join the parent support group, please email Tammy Dang at tdang@hopecentralhealth.org.
Vietnamese parent general support group
4th Wednesday of the month
Meets by Google Meet
Time: 4:00-5:30 PM
In addition, you may call Tammy Dany using the community health phone number with voicemail at 206-455-9848.
Dr. Patricia Scott, M.D., Pediatrican, HopeCentral Community Health Director
Dr. Patricia Scott is passionate about creating and supporting environments where children thrive. During college, exposure to the community development philosophy of Dr. John Perkins ignited a deep passion for justice in healthcare delivery and spurred Patricia’s pursuit of medicine. Dr. Scott attended Stanford University and then received her medical degree from Georgetown University. She completed her pediatrics residency at the University of California, San Francisco. After learning of medical needs of underserved children, she joined with others to found HopeCentral Pediatrics and has dedicated her career to the health and welfare of children and their families in Southeast Seattle. She spends her free time with her husband John (an Infectious Disease specialist physician at the University of Washington) and her three children.
We hope this series of articles about Autism encourages Vietnamese families to bring up developmental concerns with their doctor, seek an autism evaluation if needed, and enroll in critical early interventions that lead to improved functional outcomes in autism. We also hope these articles will help stimulate the community to regard families of children with developmental delay with compassion and deep respect. If you missed any of the articles when they were published, you can find them at www.VFAAB.org.
