The Portuguese Association of Trisomy 21 Sufferers (APPT21) was founded on October 1, 1990 in order to provide special care to children suffering from this genetic disorder.
In the early 1990s state-of-the-art intervention and appraisal methodologies were introduced related to this pathology and it was decided to generalise the experience to other disorders.
From 1995 onwards the Association began to work in a wider framework and on a systematic basis, pursuing specific Intervention Programmes for other disturbances to children’s development.
Given the diversity and quality of services provided, the Association constitutes one of the most creative and advanced Development Centres in Europe, integrating professionals from various backgrounds and forms of training.
The team currently develops its work in the DIFERENÇAS Children’s Development Centre– an autonomous unit of APPT21 – providing support to more than 9000 children.
One of the team’s priorities, via its Research and Development Unit, has been the creation, production and implementation of unique and original tools which aid officials, parents and educators, to accompany children suffering from development problems.
Around 30 projects are currently being developed in this framework, in software formats, that aim to maximise the results of work with children at the Centre, and also facilitate the exchange of information and working methods with other institutional partners.