“Well-child care is the primary means through which children receive developmental and preventative health care in the United States, but many children receive less than optimal well-child care."
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends well-child care visits at or around the following times: at birth, 2-4 days, 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 24 months, 3 and 4 years.
A study revealed that, “timely use of well-child care in early life may be associated with earlier detection of AD."
Results from the study indicated that children who were compliant (76-100%) with well-child care were diagnosed with AD the earliest. It was found that children who had more “sick visits” were associated to having a later age at diagnosis. Indicating how important it is for children to be seen at times when they are “well” because there are so many other variables in play when examining a child while they are “sick”.
ENCOURAGE Well-Child Care!
(Daniels, Mandell, 2013)
Importance of Screening Tools:
Screening tools are not in any way diagnostic.
These tools help to detect and narrow down certain areas with developmental deficiencies.
These are great tools to give to the parents of your patients as early as 18-24 months.
Any child that tests positive on a screening test will need a thorough evaluation with consecutive monitoring.
Allows for children to be referred EARLY to the appropriate specialists/counselors. (Including genetic counselors that can help parents understand their child's condition at a deeper level).
POTENTIAL SCREENING TOOLS:
Take the time to familiarize yourself with some screening tools so that you feel comfortable screening your patients !
These tools can be utilized in many ways, so have a look and find the one that suits you and your patients best. Don't forget to involve parents as much as possible; use all the knowledge they bring to the table. Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Revised (M-CHAT-R):
This particular tool is a 2-stage parent screening form that consists of screening questions for parents to answer about how their children usually behave.
This test has a high sensitivity however, let it be know that there are false positives; therefore, some of the children who test positive on this screening may not be diagnosed with ASD. A set of follow-up questions was developed to help with minimizing the number of false positives.
Scoring Algorithms can be found at the below site.
ASQ-3 is a developmental screening tool used by early educators and healthcare providers, that utilizes parents input.
Quick and Easy, Multi-language availability.
Helps to teach parents/providers about the normal ranges of child development and when to recognize when something is in the "monitoring zone" (ASQ, 2017). This allows for children who are flagged to be at higher risk to be followed closer.
Screening Tool for Autism in Toddlers and Young Children (STAT):
This tool is an interactive screening technique that involves various activities to test play, communication and imitation skills in toddlers (CDC, 2017).
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Provides a Toolkit specific for clinicians (Available for purchase). Helps with identification and management of children with Autism spectrum disorders.