Screening and Linkage to Services for Autism



Status:Active, not recruiting
Conditions:Neurology, Psychiatric, Psychiatric, Autism
Therapuetic Areas:Neurology, Psychiatry / Psychology
Healthy:No
Age Range:Any
Updated:10/13/2018
Start Date:February 16, 2015
End Date:December 31, 2018

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The SaLSA (Screening and Linkage to Services for Autism) study will test whether patient
navigation can help disadvantaged families obtain earlier diagnosis and treatment for their
children who have had a positive screening test for autism spectrum disorder. Half of the
families will be offered help from an autism patient navigator. The other half will receive
standard care.

Despite its relatively high rate of occurrence, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is
under-diagnosed and under-treated in young children, particularly in minority and
disadvantaged populations. Although screening for ASD in the primary care setting is
recommended as best practice, inadequate attention has been paid to addressing important
obstacles to early recognition of ASD, including barriers to referral after positive
screening, completion of diagnostic evaluations, and receipt of treatment. Patient navigation
was originally developed to reduce health care disparities. The patient navigator guides
patients with suspicious findings (e.g., a positive screening test) through and around
barriers to care to ensure timely diagnosis and treatment. Patient navigation has improved
receipt of preventive care among low-income, minority children but has not been tested for
improving early identification and treatment of autism spectrum disorders. The goal of this
study is to test the effectiveness and feasibility of patient navigation to facilitate autism
screening follow-up, diagnostic evaluation, and linkage to early intervention in a very
young, disadvantaged, minority population. To increase patient navigation's potential for
widespread application and public health impact, this study uses the Reach, Effectiveness,
Adoption, Implementation and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework, a set of criteria for
translating research into action, to guide planning and evaluation. The intervention's Reach,
Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation and Maintenance over time will be examined.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Receives medical care at Denver Community Health Services (DCHS) clinic

- Positive M-CHAT screening test (score 3 or higher) between ages 16 and 30 months at
DCHS

- Resident of City and County of Denver

Exclusion Criteria:

- Existing diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder

- Sibling of enrolled subject
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Denver, Colorado 80204
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Aurora, Colorado 80045
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