Autism

Experiences of diagnosing autism spectrum disorder: A survey of professionals in the United Kingdom

Introduction

The aim of this research was to obtain professional opinions of the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis process in the UK.  116 professionals involved in the diagnosis of ASD in the UK were asked their views of accessibility, the diagnostic process and post-diagnostic support.

The overall findings were that the most professionals were satisfied with accessibility yet around 40% of services were failing to provide timely assessments.  The majority of professionals also reported the standard tests to be useful but there was concern about how useful they were in detecting atypical ASD (e.g. in females). Less than half of the professionals surveyed reported being able to offer post-diagnostic follow-up support sessions (as recommended by NICE).  There was also dissatisfaction with post diagnostic provision and a feeling that service improvements were needed for most age groups.

Claire L Rogers, Lorna Goddard, Elisabeth L Hill, Lucy A Henry and Laura Crane.   Article first published online: 16 December 2015

Publisher: Sage

Autism October 2016 vol. 20 no. 7 820-831

http://aut.sagepub.com/content/20/7/820.full.pdf+html (PDF link)

http://aut.sagepub.com/content/20/7/820.abstract (Abstract link)