Funding outcome

Autism has become more common in Canada. In Alberta, children wait over a year to be diagnosed and even longer for supports. Most see a specialist for assessment. But there are not enough to keep pace. Experts have suggested a different approach. Children are first assessed by family physician or community pediatrician for an autism diagnosis. Only some are sent to a specialist when needed. Research has shown that autism diagnoses made by community-based doctors are accurate. But training is needed. We created a training program that will teach doctors how to do autism assessments in their own clinics. This could help children be seen sooner. This will also reduce wait times. In this study, we will use interviews and surveys to learn how well our training program works. We want to learn if our program can improve families' experiences with autism assessments. We also want to know how we can continue to improve our program. To test this, we have made a 7-step evaluation process. We want understand doctors' needs, goals, and experiences with the training. We will also interview families who were assessed by our trained doctors to see how this experience impacted them. Finally, we will review hospital records to see if our training program has helped to shorten wait times. This study could be used to show that our training program is effective, meaningful, and adaptable to the needs of diverse communities.