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Open minds

  • AUBMC Special Kids Clinic
    At OpenMinds we value the uniqueness and extreme worth of the AUBMC Special Kids Clinic (ASKC) to our community, and have embarked on a mission to enhance its services making them accessible to many, in order to propagate its value and benefits further into our society. We are concerned with the overwhelming prevalence of special needs amongst children and young adults today, and are troubled by this growing trend.

    The AUBMC Special Kids Clinic (ASKC) is a unique, hospital-based, multidisciplinary clinic that addresses the special needs of children in Lebanon and the region. Expert pediatric neurologists team up with various physicians, therapists, and other specialists to provide early detection and coordinated comprehensive care for developmentally and neurologically impaired children. Since its inception in 2011 by Dr. Rose-Mary Boustany, ASKC has assisted hundreds of families from Lebanon and the surrounding region, with demand for services increasing at an alarming rate.

    OpenMinds has helped more than 700 families with clinical care plans & treatments to date

The mission of the AUBMC Special Kids Clinic is to:

Provide special kids and their families with compassionate, multidisciplinary and comprehensive state-of-the-art care in order to optimize special needs kids’ intellectual and physical development in preparation for their full integration into school and society at large.

Educate pediatricians, nurses, other allied health professionals, school administrations, teachers, and the general public about the needs of special kids and optimal ways to meet their physical, emotional and educational requirements.

Conduct research into the underlying epidemiology, genetics and cell biology of neurogenetic, neurodevelopmental and pediatric neurodegenerative diseases.



  • ASKC Services:
    Our clinical caters to the needs of our little patients. We are adjacent to general pediatric services and the clinical laboratory. Our waiting area opens onto a specially designed outside play area for children. Our facility is easily accessible to all patients. Our therapy rooms and clinics are especially outfitted with automated examination tables, children’s furniture, educational toy, specialized equipment, toys and batteries used in the assessment and treatment of special needs kids.
AUBMC Special Kids Clinic Offers:
  • Devoted and highly specialized allied health professionals who will assist pediatric neurologists in the diagnosis, management and care of dually disabled children.
  • Dedicated pediatric physical therapists, occupational and psychomotor therapists, and speech and feeding specialists who will provide much needed regular therapy sessions in a multidisciplinary team approach, ensuring the informed, comprehensive and coordinated care of special needs children.
  • Initial comprehensive assessments with follow-up for patients living in the vicinity, take-home plans for those living far away, and liaison with specialized individuals through an extensive database of similar services available in remote regions of Lebanon and other countries in the region such as Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Bahrain and Qatar.
  • Regular reevaluations for readjustment of early intervention plans based on individual progress achieved.
  • Applied Behavior Analysis.
  • A Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) will assess the child and offer the following services.
  • Conduct functional assessments and behavior intervention plan.
  • Supervise and manage each program.
  • Assign a senior behavior therapist to train families, shadow teachers and therapists in the implementation of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) principles.
  • Assign an ABA therapist to the child (ABA therapy is conducted in the child’s home or school).
  • Collaborate with all other members of the child’s educational environment and offer school inclusion support.
  • Ultimate integration and mainstreaming into schools with dedicated and specialized services.