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. 2023 Dec 29;18(2):410-423.
doi: 10.1007/s40617-023-00896-9. eCollection 2025 Jun.

Delays to Behavioral Therapy in Michigan for Children Diagnosed with Autism: A Summary of Needs Assessment Outcomes to Inform Public Policy Advocacy Initiatives

Andrea M Stephens  1 , Adam M Briggs  1 , Brittany H Loder  1 , Jaimie Barr  1 , Alyssa Miller  1
Affiliations

Delays to Behavioral Therapy in Michigan for Children Diagnosed with Autism: A Summary of Needs Assessment Outcomes to Inform Public Policy Advocacy Initiatives

Andrea M Stephens et al. Behav Anal Pract. .

Abstract

Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are eligible to receive behavioral health services in Michigan, including those based on the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA). Demand for these specific services far outpaces the number of qualified professionals in the state (Yingling et al., 2022), thus resulting in delayed access to a much-needed service. The purpose of our survey was twofold. First, we surveyed families throughout Michigan (N = 78) to identify the types of barriers encountered and the extent to which families of autistic individuals experience them when pursuing ABA services. Second, our survey assessed the needs of these families during service delays in an attempt to understand how to best support them during this time. Results indicated that 73% of children spent time on a waitlist, varying in duration from 1 month to over 1 year. Further, most caregivers indicated they were concerned about their children's behavior while awaiting services and would have been interested in training to help them manage behavioral concerns and teach new skills to their children. We conclude by reviewing recommendations for addressing child and caregiver needs during this time and discussing implications for public policy advocacy initiatives.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-023-00896-9.

Keywords: Advocacy; Applied behavior analysis; Autism; Delay to services; Needs assessment; Public policy; Survey research; Waitlist.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of InterestThe authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. The authors have no relevant financial or nonfinancial interests to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Behavioral concerns while waiting for services (N = 34). Note. Behavioral concerns depicted in the figure include appropriate communication/language, social skills, daily living skills, and problem behavior. The severity of all behaviors was assessed and depicted as high, medium, or low severity
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Severity of behavior while waiting for services
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Caregiver needs while waiting for services. Note: ADLs = Activities of daily living
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Preferred modality of caregiver trainings
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Caregiver barriers to receiving supports while waiting for services
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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