First-Of-Its-Kind Autism Center Opens In Newtown Township

NEWTOWN, PA — In a new partnership aimed at bringing best-in-class autism care to patient families in the Philadelphia region, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Soar Autism Center on Thursday announced the opening of its first CHOP-Soar Autism Center in Newtown Township.

The opening launches the CHOP-Soar Autism Center network, which will provide teams of outpatient autism therapists to fully support families following diagnosis through therapy.

Families of children with autism often struggle to find access to quality, coordinated, and research-backed autism care. Delays in care are common, with families often experiencing long waitlists following an autism diagnosis. Recognizing this gap, CHOP and Soar announced that they are uniting to create a partnership that coordinates both medical and therapeutic support.

Each CHOP-Soar Autism Center – beginning with the first location near CHOP Pediatric Primary Care in Newtown – will offer speech, occupational, and behavioral therapy services for children through age 6 under one roof, providing integrated, in-center care during children's most critical years of development.

The centers will offer full- and half-day program options using a research-based, play-focused approach that helps young children with autism build communication, social, and cognitive skills in a nurturing environment.

"At CHOP, we are committed to delivering the best possible care for our patients, and we recognize that families in the autism community often struggle to access the services and therapy they need," said Nathan J. Blum, MD, Chief of the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "Our new partnership with Soar is grounded in collaboration, allowing us to extend the reach of CHOP's network in a new and innovative way. Whether it's cutting-edge research from our Center for Autism Research or recently established Lurie Autism Institute, we know that bringing together knowledge and resources benefits all those touched by autism."

Each CHOP-Soar Autism Center will provide tailored care that values each child's individuality and potential. Therapists will collaborate directly with each child's medical team – whether within the CHOP Primary Care network, the CHOP Autism Integrated Care Program, or another care provider – to ensure each family receives coordinated, comprehensive care and support every step of the way.

"Our mission has always been to provide children with the most effective and compassionate care possible," said Ian Goldstein, MD, MPH, Co-Founder and CEO of Soar Autism Center. "Partnering with CHOP allows us to elevate that mission, coupling Soar's autism therapy services with CHOP's unmatched clinical and research excellence."

The CHOP-Soar Autism Center network builds upon CHOP's comprehensive approach to care and longtime commitment to children living with autism. In addition to expanding autism care through this partnership, CHOP has led robust research in this space, recently bolstered by the creation of the Lurie Autism Institute to help understand the causes of autism and how to develop interventions, support systems and therapies.

The first CHOP-Soar Autism Center in Newtown opened earlier this month, with plans for several additional locations across CHOP's existing footprint over time.

For more information about CHOP-Soar Autism Center or to inquire about enrollment, visit https://www.chop-soar.com