Exploring the Impact of Clinical Diagnosis on Health and Education Outcomes for Children Receiving Special Educational Needs support for Autism

探索临床诊断对接受自闭症特殊教育需求支持的儿童的健康和教育结果的影响

• 批准号: ES/Z502431/1
• 负责人: Xingna Zhang
• 金额: $ 18.41万
• 依托单位: University of Liverpool
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Fellowship
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2024 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ES%2FZ502431%2F1
• 关键词: Exploring; Impact; Clinical; Diagnosis; Health

Autism, or Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a lifelong developmental disability which affects how people communicate and interact with the world. It affects around 3% of children. Children with ASD experience cognitive, sensory, and social challenges, including in schools. They face adverse health and education outcomes, such as an increased risk of cognitive development delays, motor skill challenges, anxiety, and school absence and exclusion. The lifetime cost of supporting an individual with ASD in the UK was £0.92 million in 2011, whilst annual special education and health-related costs for 4-17-year-olds with ASD were £14,006 and £890.Clinical assessments for ASD are typically conducted within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), and a formal diagnosis is a crucial step toward accessing tailored support and services addressing the unique challenges of ASD. Although there is some opportunity for additional support in schools without a clinical diagnosis, many children with autism are not getting the full support they need. There is a significant challenge within the current clinical system for assessing ASD. Waiting times for assessments have surpassed 5 years in some regions, creating an unmanageable backlog. This crisis necessitates immediate action to ensure timely support for children in both health and education settings.To address this pressing issue, this project will generate new knowledge about the impact of clinical diagnosis of ASD upon inequalities in health and education outcomes for children in England. This knowledge will enable health and education services to identify opportunities to intervene to mitigate inequalities. I will analyse data from Education and Child Health Insights from Linked Data (ECHILD). ECHILD joins together health, education and social care information for all children in England and provides a detailed picture of outcomes. The project will draw upon diverse disciplines such as public health, data science, and geography to explore health and educational outcomes for autistic children, considering the broader context of service shortages in clinical assessments.The primary goal is to investigate whether obtaining a diagnosis from a clinical setting offers additional advantages to children identified solely in an educational setting with ASD, who may require extra support. This exploration aims to enhance our understanding of which children would benefit most from clinical diagnoses. The insights gained could be applied to prioritising children on waiting lists, introducing fair and programmable practices into health systems. The benefit is that the needs of children could be better matched by the services that support them.The project's practical relevance lies in directly addressing challenges related to underdiagnosis and the crisis in clinical services. It strives to promote equal care for children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds who may face exacerbated disadvantages if their ASD is not identified and addressed. I am committed to working closely with key stakeholders, including members of education and health services supporting autistic children, as well as involving members of the ASD community.The potential impact of this project is substantial, with the capacity to bring about tangible education and health benefits and create meaningful impact. It addresses the crisis currently faced by frontline practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders striving to support autistic children. The proposal aligns with the objectives of fostering engagement and community building in administrative data research, emphasising a dedication to making a positive difference in the lives of autistic children and their families.

自闭症或自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 是一种终生发育障碍，影响人们与世界的沟通和互动方式，约 3% 的自闭症儿童会经历认知、感觉和社交方面的挑战，包括在学校。他们面临着不利的健康和教育结果，例如认知发展迟缓、运动技能挑战、焦虑、缺课和排斥的风险增加。2011 年，英国支持自闭症谱系障碍患者的终生成本为 92 万英镑。年度的4-17 岁患有自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 的特殊教育和健康相关费用分别为 14,006 英镑和 890 英镑。自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 的临床评估通常在儿童和青少年心理健康服务 (CAMHS) 内进行，正式诊断是关键的一步尽管在没有进行自闭症临床诊断的情况下，学校有一些获得额外支持的机会，但许多自闭症儿童并未获得他们所需的全面支持。当前的一些地区评估 ASD 的临床系统已超过 5 年，造成了难以管理的积压，需要立即采取行动，确保为儿童提供健康和教育方面的及时支持。为了解决这一紧迫问题，该项目将产生关于自闭症谱系障碍临床诊断对英格兰儿童健康和教育结果不平等的影响的新知识，这些知识将使健康和教育服务能够确定干预措施以减轻不平等的机会。来自关联数据的教育和儿童健康洞察 (ECHILD) 将英格兰所有儿童的健康、教育和社会护理信息结合在一起，并提供了结果的详细情况，该项目将利用公共卫生、数据科学等不同学科。和地理来探索自闭症儿童的健康和教育结果，考虑到临床评估中服务短缺的更广泛背景。主要目标是调查从临床环境中获得诊断是否为仅在教育环境中识别出的儿童提供了额外的优势自闭症谱系障碍（ASD），谁可能需要这项探索旨在加深我们对哪些儿童将从临床诊断中受益最大的了解，所获得的见解可以应用于优先考虑候补名单上的儿童，将公平和可编程的做法引入卫生系统。该项目的实际意义在于直接解决与诊断不足和临床服务危机相关的挑战。它致力于促进对儿童的平等照顾，特别是那些来自弱势背景的儿童，如果他们的处境可能会更加不利。他们的自闭症谱系障碍我致力于与主要利益相关者密切合作，包括支持自闭症儿童的教育和卫生服务成员，以及自闭症谱系障碍社区的成员。该项目的潜在影响是巨大的，有能力它可以带来切实的教育和健康效益，并产生有意义的影响，解决了努力支持自闭症儿童的一线从业者、政策制定者和其他利益相关者目前面临的危机。该提案符合促进行政数据研究的参与和社区建设的目标。强调致力于创造一个自闭症儿童及其家庭的生活发生了积极的变化。