Quasi-experimental Controlled Study on the Effect of Autism Resource Clinic Guardian Attendance at a Military Treatment Facility.

This study looked at whether attending an educational clinic helped military families after their child was diagnosed with autism. Families who attended the clinic were more likely to use behavioral therapy (73% vs 33%) and early intervention services. However, attending the clinic didn't help families start services faster or reduce parent stress. The study suggests the educational sessions may help families connect with some important services, but more research is needed.

This quasi-experimental study evaluated the impact of an Autism Resource Clinic (ARC) educational session for guardians of newly diagnosed autistic children at a military treatment facility. The ARC provided multidisciplinary information to help guardians build personalized support teams. Comparing attendees versus non-attendees over 3 months post-diagnosis, researchers found significantly higher use of Applied Behavioral Analysis (73.3% vs 33.3%) and trends toward increased county early intervention services (40% vs 13.3%) among ARC participants. However, ARC attendance did not significantly affect time to service initiation or reduce parental stress levels.

This pilot study represents unique research within military healthcare settings but has limitations including pandemic-era data collection and sequential group evaluation.

Educational resource clinics may improve utilization of behavioral interventions and early intervention services for military families, though they may not immediately reduce parental stress or expedite service initiation. Larger randomized controlled trials are needed to establish effectiveness and inform implementation in military healthcare settings.

Study conducted during COVID-19 pandemic, sequential evaluation of groups rather than randomization, small sample size, limited generalizability beyond military populations, and borderline significance for some outcomes. The abstract does not report exact sample sizes.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition that requires multidisciplinary care. Evidence-based practice indicates that early intervention may improve long-term ASD outcomes. The Autism Resource Clinic (ARC) provides an educational session for guardians empowering them to build a personalized ASD team for their child. We examined the impact of guardian attendance of an ARC at a Military Treatment Facility on time to initiation of patient services and guardian stress level.

A quasi-experimental controlled study was conducted comparing a group of guardians attending the ARC with a group of guardians not attending the ARC following a child's initial ASD diagnosis. ARC speakers included medical, county/state, community/military, and advocacy experts. Surveys were completed at diagnosis, 1, 2, and 3 mo postdiagnosis. Initiation of patient services and Parental Stress Scale scores were compared between groups using independent samples t-test, chi-square tests, or nonparametric tests, as appropriate.

Use of Applied Behavioral Analysis was significantly higher among ARC attendees vs. nonattendees (73.3% vs. 33.3%, P = 0.028). County early intervention was more frequent among ARC attendees versus nonattendees (40% vs. 13.3%, P = 0.09). Of borderline significance, median time to initiation of genetics services was greater in ARC attendees vs. nonattendees (106 vs. 65.5, P = 0.10). The two groups did not differ on changes in Parental Stress Scale score from baseline to follow-up months 1, 2, or 3.

Although ARC did not influence time to initiation of patient services or guardian stress level, attendance of ARC was associated with more frequent use of Applied Behavioral Analysis services and county early intervention services. This pilot study is unique as it targets guardians of ASD patients within military treatment facilities. Study limitations include data collection during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, sequential evaluation of experimental and control groups, sample size and generalizability. A large, multicenter, randomized controlled trial is required to better assess the impact of this educational opportunity among military populations.