Technology May Help Doctors Learn To Address Autism
Many pediatricians remain ill-equipped to identify and support kids with the developmental disorder, but a new approach may help. New research suggests that a series of two-hour videoconferencing sessions may be enough to significantly boost the capability of working pediatricians to better treat those on the spectrum.
Through a program called ECHO Autism, researchers at the University of Missouri evaluated whether practicing pediatricians could be trained to screen for and treat autism in a series of remote training sessions.
Ultimately, after participating in the training, doctors were twice as likely to screen their patients for autism in accordance with professional recommendations, according to findings published recently in the journal Clinical Pediatrics.
What’s more, participants reported increased confidence and were more likely to apply autism-specific resources in addressing issues ranging from aggression to diet and neurological symptoms affecting their patients.
Further study of the ECHO Autism model is now expanding to 10 additional academic centers across the United States and Canada.
Read the full article in Disability Scoop online. The ECHO Autism study Abstract is available here.
