Current Hospital Conditions for People with Autism
Individuals with autism twice as likely to undergo in-patient hospitalization (6% vs. 3% of population).
National Autism Indicators Report, 2020, A.J. Drexel Autism Institute Link
Individuals with autism had significantly higher lengths of [hospital] stay (6.5 vs. 4.2) as compared to those without autism.
Lockhandwala, et al., 2012, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders Link
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In addition, many families of children with ASD experience a difficult time locating dentists willing to treat their child. In fact, only 40% of general dental practitioners stated that they would work with children with ASD.
Como DH, Stein Duker LI, Polido JC, Cermak SA. Oral Health and Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Unique Collaboration between Dentistry and Occupational Therapy. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Dec 27;18(1):135. Link
Importance of Trainings for Healthcare Professionals
91.4% of medical students and pediatric trainees reported that they did not receive enough didactic or clinical training regarding treatment of a child with ASD when they present with an acute illness, and 92.6% felt that more training on this topic was warranted.
Austriaco K, Aban I, Willig J, Kong M. Contemporary Trainee Knowledge of Autism: How Prepared Are Our Future Providers? Front Pediatr. 2019 Apr 26;7:165 Link
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To fill the gap, we successfully surveyed 8,184 mental health treatment facilities in the contiguous U.S. As of August 2019, fewer than half (43.0%) of facilities reported providing behavioral health care for children with ASD, and 36.6% were currently accepting children with ASD as new patients. Only 12.7% reported having a clinician with specialized training, and 4.3% reported a specialized program.
Cantor, et al., 2020, Health Affairs Link
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Based on the results reported in these studies, specialized autism training programs were associated with positive changes in physician knowledge and self-efficacy related to the care of autistic patients.
Fung, et al., 2022, Autism Link