Early Detection, Diagnosis and Intervention Services for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in the European Union (ASDEU): Family and Professional Perspectives.

Bejarano-Martín et al. (2020) asked 1,500 parents and 1,000 professionals in 14 EU countries to rate early autism services. They used the same 20-item survey for both groups. Items covered how fast kids were seen, how clear the steps were, and how helpful the help felt.

The team wanted to know if parents and professionals see the same service quality.

Parents gave lower marks on every item. The gap was biggest for ‘speed of first visit’ and ‘ease of getting therapy’. Average parent score was 2.8 out of 5. Professionals scored 3.7.

Only 42 % of parents felt services started ‘soon enough’ versus 71 % of professionals.

Siklos et al. (2007) saw the same pain point in Canada: families waited almost three years and saw 4+ clinicians before diagnosis. Álvaro widens the lens and shows the wait-and-confusion problem is Europe-wide.

Ouyang et al. (2024) meta-analysis shows parent-mediated NDBIs like ImPACT and ESDM work when parents are trained well. Álvaro’s low parent ratings explain why many families never reach those programmes.

Wilson et al. (2023) found that later diagnosis predicts bigger service gaps for teens. Álvaro’s data suggest the trouble starts in the toddler years, not just adolescence.

If parents feel lost, they disengage. Disengagement kills follow-through on the very parent-training models that work. Use Álvaro’s items as a quick parent-experience check each quarter. Ask: ‘Was the first visit fast?’ and ‘Were next steps clear?’ Fix the bottlenecks they name, then offer Ouyang’s staged parent-training pathway. Satisfaction rises and you keep kids in evidence-based care.