Mal Washer (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the motion proposed by the member for Murray and supported by the member for Braddon and the member for Blair, and to acknowledge the advice and support provided by Anne Russell from the National Organisation for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome and Related Disorders, NOFASARD, as the previous member noted. In the absence of foetal alcohol spectrum disorder, or FASD, prevalence study in Australia it is difficult to convince government or the public on the significant risk this issue poses for Australia. Dr Elizabeth Elliott, in the Australian on 20 June this year has suggested Western nations might well have a prevalence rate of somewhere between two and five per cent. This is based on epidemiological research in 2009 by Dr Philip May and colleagues in the USA. What is more accepted is an increasing incidence of FASD linked to better detection, the momentum of FASD awareness in North America and better preparedness of service providers to respond to the needs of children and education and social support services.

There is a current prevalence research study called the Lililwan Project in Fitzroy Crossing in northern Western Australia investigating FASD in this Australian Aboriginal community. It was initiated as a consequence of community lobbying and the need for an evidence base to support local prevention strategies. Multidisciplinary teams have been engaged to conduct assessment and diagnosis, record data and provide case planning for optimum outcomes for children. Data from this project will provide invaluable information on the prevalence of FASD in Aboriginal communities.

It is critical to support any community where FASD is overrepresented, but it is also critical that we do not lose sight of the reality that FASD is not just an Indigenous issue. Alcohol consumption in Australia is not limited to Aboriginal communities. There is ample evidence to support high rates of alcohol consumption in the non-Indigenous community. International comparisons show that Australians consume 8.89 litres; Canadians 7.7 litres and the US 8.44 litres per capita each year, and to determine prevalence a much wider study needs to be undertaken. Some suggest that over 200,000 Australians may be affected by FASD, and that means one in 100 live births. This rate is higher than the incidences of autism, Aspergers, ADHD and Down's syndrome. It is likely that FASD could be the most common preventable type of intellectual disability.

The second critical factor is the reliance on IQ as a measurement of disability. Seventy-five to eighty per cent of patients with FASD have been found to have an IQ in the normal range. Average or higher IQ scores often preclude special needs funding and/or service opportunities. In addition, the inherent limitations of a traditional IQ test restricts their usefulness in directing effective strategies. A study on the relationship between FASD and IQ undertaken by the University of Alaska has found that fewer than 35 per cent of individuals with FASD would have qualified for special education, given the criterion of an IQ under 71. For people with FASD an IQ assessment will not identify the often uniquely individual presentation of disabilities nor the seriousness of the brain damage. Whilst a diagnosis of foetal alcohol syndrome may rely on facial dysmorphology, there remains the conundrum of distinguishing other conditions within the spectrum. Particular skills and training required to accurately assess executive or adaptive functioning and the involvement of neurophysiology and occupational therapy.

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