WS Chronicle

By Busta Brown

Every time I’ve gone to the mall, I’ve seen parents having a hard time with their children. And more times than not, the parent wasn’t able to calm the child. I’ve been one of those parents many times, so I know how frustrating and even embarrassing it is. 

Andrew A. Dinkins was on vacation and during a trip to a mall, he witnessed a couple having an extremely hard time with their child. Andrew immediately did something most of us would not do. What he did would change his life forever. 

“When I saw this child crying and crying, and the two parents didn’t know what to do, I walked up to the family and asked if I could assist them and they said yes. The child had autism, but I was able to calm him down. The family thanked me as they cried and cried, and then we talked for about an hour. I didn’t think to mention that I owned a company that can help their child, because it wasn’t about the money or trying to recruit a new client. For me, it’s about empowering and helping families. At that moment, I knew that was my passion and purpose. I wanted to help children, families. I want to be a part of what changes our families down the road,” he shared. 

Andrew A. Dinkins is the CEO and owner of Elite Healthcare Group, Inc. in Winston-Salem. The privately owned company launched in 2016. They use a collaborative approach to provide professional data-driven and evidence-based services to individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to help each client reach their highest ability of independence. By providing individualized programming and focusing on each client’s deficits, they work together to develop skill acquisition including communication, social, play, and self-help skills. 

They also provide behavior reduction programming to focus on reducing maladaptive behaviors and building socially significant behaviors. “If you don’t recognize the symptoms of autism, you might push the behaviors under the rug and think the child is just acting up. That’s where we come in, especially in the Black communities. I want to educate people about how prevalent autism is and help families navigate through it, so their children can live happy, healthy, productive and successful lives,” said Andrew. 

Owner and CEO of Tesla Motors, Elon Musk, is very open about having Asperger’s syndrome, which is a form of autism. He’s what is known as high functioning autism, which are individuals that can speak, read, write, and handle basic life skills like eating and getting dressed. They can live independently. A lot of them are brilliant individuals, and with the proper care, they will become productive and successful adults, like Elon Musk. 

Dinkins said that is his primary reason for starting Elite Healthcare Group Inc. “We’re here to help children with autism become successful and better individuals. We help adults as well, so the whole family can be treated and educated about autism. 

“I remember one day a friend and I saw a family struggling to calm their child and my friend said they need to spank that child. And I said, that sound is not the sound of a child that needs a spanking. It’s the sound of a child that has a diagnosis and needs help, so I went over to help,” said Dinkins.

“Our group therapy provides individualized services, because every child is different. We also provide daycare, so parents can go out on a date night or take a break. Some parents don’t get a break, because having a child with autism can be a 24-hour-a-day job. We provide parent training as well. Our parent training helps them provide the same services we do here at Elite Healthcare Group, Inc. We want to empower our parents with the necessary skills and knowledge needed in their homes. 

“We’re in the process of moving to our new building where we’ll provide occupational and speech therapy as well. What we’re doing is creating a one-stop shop for children with autism, so they don’t have to travel to many different locations,” shared the proud husband and father of four. 

Elite Healthcare Group also provides diagnostic evaluation, behavioral and skills assessment. 

Andrew said children with autism are very loving individuals. “When I’m having a bad day, I look forward to seeing my clients, because they help me feel better. They’re masterminds and extremely brilliant children. I love what God has blessed me to do,” he said. 

Andrew credits his wife and children for his success. “Without their support, understanding and patience, I couldn’t have done any of this. I want to thank the community and other local businesses, because they have been extremely supportive as well. Getting to this point didn’t come without struggles and sacrifice. There were plenty of times I had to put myself last and the business first, which caused me to lose some friends. But now I’m able to relax and the business takes care of itself,” he said. 

I asked what his favorite scripture or quote is. “You don’t have to position yourself in front of people to be used by God, but posture yourself, so that you’re ready.” 

Andrew A. Dinkins, CEO and owner of our Business of the Month, Elite Healthcare Group, Inc. For more information, call 336-579-3560 or visit www.elitehealthcaregroup.org. Special thanks to all of the staff of Elite Healthcare Group Inc.

To apply to be the next Business of the Month, visit https://triadminoritybusinessexpo.com.