"Facilitated communication" (the technique of "facilitating" the communicative abilities of a person with autism by "guiding" their hands over a communication device) has largely been discredited throughout the psychiatric community. There are still occasional scholarly articles written in support of FC and it continues to be practiced, albeit rarely.
The autism management center featured in this episode is based on the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Massachusetts, one of the few autism management centers that uses electroshock as aversion therapy.
This episode aired the same day the Oklahoma City bombing occurred.
Socorro Santiago (Mami) previously played the role of Cora Amado in God Bless the Child (1991) (episode 2.5).