Autism screening and diagnosis in low resource settings: Challenges and opportunities to enhance research and services worldwide.
Use and share free autism screeners and telehealth setups to reach kids who now wait years for a diagnosis.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Nickerson et al. (2015) wrote a narrative review. They looked at autism screening and diagnosis in low-resource settings worldwide.
The paper is a call to action. It asks researchers to build free, open-source tools and training.
What they found
The authors found big gaps. Many kids with autism never get screened or diagnosed in poor countries.
They say free tools and online training can close these gaps.
How this fits with other research
Meimei et al. (2022) later showed telehealth tools can spot autism with good accuracy. This supports the 2015 call for tech help.
Stainbrook et al. (2019) ran a real telemedicine clinic in rural America. Referrals and show-ups rose. It proves the idea works on the ground.
Lee et al. (2022) found most Jordanian kids miss needed genetic tests. This extends the 2015 point: even basic assessments stay out of reach.
McGonigle et al. (2014) used a simple rating scale in Tanzania. It worked with small tweaks. This shows low-cost tools can travel across cultures.
Why it matters
You can act today. Share free screeners like M-CHAT-R online. Link families to open training videos. Push your agency to pilot telehealth intakes. Every open resource you use cuts wait times and travel costs for kids who now get nothing.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Most research into the epidemiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of autism is based on studies in high income countries. Moreover, within high income countries, individuals of high socioeconomic status are disproportionately represented among participants in autism research. Corresponding disparities in access to autism screening, diagnosis, and treatment exist globally. One of the barriers perpetuating this imbalance is the high cost of proprietary tools for diagnosing autism and for delivering evidence-based therapies. Another barrier is the high cost of training of professionals and para-professionals to use the tools. Open-source and open access models provide a way to facilitate global collaboration and training. Using these models and technologies, the autism scientific community and clinicians worldwide should be able to work more effectively and efficiently than they have to date to address the global imbalance in autism knowledge and at the same time advance our understanding of autism and our ability to deliver cost-effective services to everyone in need.
Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research, 2015 · doi:10.1002/aur.1575