Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in North Dakota. Database to Screening: Bridging the Gap Between What We Know and Where to Go

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that can cause persistent deficits in social communication, behavior, and development. The effect of ASD differs from individual to individual, thus it is considered a spectrum disorder. Early screening and intervention are essential for improving outcomes. However, primary care providers’ screening rates remain low even though the diagnosis of ASD is possible in children who are 2 years old or younger. On average, children are 4 years or older at the time of diagnosis. The purpose of this project was to provide primary care providers with the tools needed to screen for ASD at well-child visits and to provide a list of resources for local ASD services. The second purpose was to form an alliance with the North Dakota Department of Health for the purpose of producing and distributing the toolkit to healthcare providers statewide. The ASD toolkit includes an ASD screening algorithm, M-CHAT-R and a local resource guide. At the Autism Spectrum Disorder Task Force’s business meeting on August 20, 2018, seventeen members listened to a presentation about the project. Following the presentation, members provider verbal input and feedback about the project; however, members did not return the survey about the toolkit. That task force verbally offered support to move forward with the toolkit project. A second survey requested feedback from primary care providers about the effectiveness and utility of the ASD toolkit. The small return rate, N=10, was disappointing and not sufficient for generalized results. However, provider respondents showed an interest in ASD education, and that the toolkit would useful in practice. Future research should include a larger population working in primary care in urban and rural settings. Data obtained after the providers had the opportunity to use the toolkit in practice would allow for analysis of the toolkit’s usefulness. Instead of only surveying providers prior to toolkit use, in the future, provider surveys conducted after 3, 6, and 12 months of toolkit use in practice are recommended.