What is Thoughtful House?
We are a non-profit organization that provides medical and educational support for children affected by childhood developmental disorders (CDDs). The focus of Thoughtful House is to provide the best, most up-to-date treatment for patients and to conduct medical and educational research in order to ensure continuing improvements in the quality of treatment available to all.
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What are "childhood developmental disorders"?
This inclusive term refers to disorders such as Autism, PDD (pervasive developmental disorder), Asperger's Syndrome, ADD (attention deficit disorder), ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), global developmental delay, and NLD (non-verbal learning disorder).
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Why is there a need for Thoughtful House?
The US is in the midst of an epidemic of childhood developmental disorders. According to the Federal Government's Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 1 in 6 children has a developmental disorder. The number of children affected by autism is now approaching 1 in 120. No institution simultaneously addresses the educational and medical needs of these children better than Thoughtful House.
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Where is Thoughtful House?
Austin, Texas was chosen for the site of Thoughtful House because there is a huge need for individualized care for affected children in Texas, and the Austin community includes universities, biotech companies, and IT resources that can help Thoughtful House achieve its goals.
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Who are the principals involved in Thoughtful House?
Executive Director Dr. Andrew Wakefield is an academic gastroenterologist from London. He is world-renowned for his research, and for his discovery of autistic enterocolitis.

Dr. Arthur Krigsman is a pediatrician and pediatric gastroenterologist with extensive experience in the evaluation and treatment of gastrointestinal pathology common in children with autistic spectrum disorders. His findings have been presented at scientific and lay meetings in the United States and Canada. Dr. Krigsman is actively involved in ongoing research initiatives involving children with ASD and bowel disease.

Dr. Bryan Jepson is board certified in emergency medicine. Motivated by his son's diagnosis of autism, he opened the Children's Biomedical Center of Utah in 2002. Working at CBC of Utah part-time, he treated hundreds of children on the autism spectrum using the DAN! protocol. He is pleased to have the opportunity to treat affected children full-time at Thoughtful House.

Dr. Doreen Granpeesheh is the Founder and Director of the Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD). She is a Ph.D. in Psychology and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Under her vision and direction, CARD has become the industry leader in administering effective multi-disciplinary treatment plans. CARD opened its collaborative clinic at Thoughtful House in early 2005.

Kelly Barnhill, CN, completed coursework required for certification in 2005, and now provides nutritional counseling and consultation in conjunction with Thoughtful House. She has counseled families affected with autism for over five years, and her studies and work at Thoughtful House are the culmination of many years' effort.

Thoughtful House is under the management of a Board of Directors. This board is comprised of professionals and parents committed to the mission of Thoughtful House. An Advisory Council also serves Thoughtful House on special projects and general development.
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Why is Thoughtful House unique?
It brings together world-renowned clinicians and researchers in a data-driven, results-focused environment designed to generate best-practice educational and medical treatment models for affected children. By looking at the comprehensive picture of all interventions (medical, educational, behavioral, and recreational), we can continually assess which treatments work best for each child.
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How is Thoughtful House funded?
Thoughtful House is a non-profit organization that is funded through private donations (both individual and corporate), foundation grants, and a fee-for-service model for clinical services.
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What can parents expect when they bring their child to Thoughtful House?
Our goal is to bring consistent and knowledgeable professionals together to create a multi-disciplinary team for the care of affected children. Parents are an integral part of that team, and can expect a depth of understanding from our staff that comes from some of us having our own affected children.
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What is Thoughtful House's mission or purpose?
The mission is to fight for the recovery of children with developmental disorders through the unique combination of medical care, education, and research.
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What does Thoughtful House offer to children with developmental disorders? (treatment/education/testing, etc)
Thoughtful House offers the services of a pediatric gastroenterologist through our clinical collaboration with Dr. Arthur Krigsman. We also offer ABA (applied behavior analysis) services through our partnership with CARD, including assessments and the development and implementation of individualized behavioral treatment programs. In addition, we offer Monday night meetings, brown bag lunches, seminars, and events for the community, most without charge. Dr. Bryan Jepson provides appropriate medical care for affected children, and Kelly Barnhill offers dietary counseling. Thoughtful House Equestrians provides therapeutic horseback riding and hippotherapy services.
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What are the types of treatment that Thoughtful House will be implementing?
Every child is unique, therefore every child's treatment plan is specific to him or her. Thoughtful House evaluates each child's needs and develops an individualized treatment program. Data is collected at every step of the way to ensure the efficacy of the treatment and to determine any appropriate changes. There is no inflexible or "one-size-fits-all" treatment protocol.
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How does Thoughtful House decide which children they will treat?
It evaluates each child completely and makes referrals as needed, and treatment recommendations based on the assessments. Thoughtful House welcomes any child regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, or religion.
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How does Thoughtful House decide which children they will treat?
Because treatment is individualized, cost varies based on the child's needs. Thoughtful House does everything possible to help families obtain the necessary funding for treatment.
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What is the most urgent need at Thoughtful House?
Because we are a privately funded, non-profit organization, we rely on the generosity of donors to support our work.

We are raising funds for the following:

• The Thoughtful Fund - this is an endowment fund designed to help families afford care at THCFC
• Thoughtful House Research Fund - this funds the research team for investigation into the treatment and cause of childhood developmental disorders.