Emergency service experiences of adults with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability.

Tint et al. (2019) asked 40 autistic adults without intellectual disability about their run-ins with emergency services.

Each person filled out a short survey covering the last 12–18 months. They noted how many times they visited an emergency room or spoke with police and how they felt about each encounter.

Almost half had gone to the ER, and one third had police contact in that short window.

The group rated ER care poorly, but they viewed police interactions more favorably.

Boudreau et al. (2015) mined 2010 national data and showed that autistic teens and adults land in the ER for different reasons by age. Ami’s 2019 survey picks up where that chart left off—adding the patient’s voice and the news that adults are unhappy once they arrive.

Garrick et al. (2022) ran a near-copy survey with Australian parents of autistic kids. Both studies find the same theme: emergency staff miss autism-specific needs, and families leave stressed.

Ghanouni et al. (2021) widened the lens to all healthcare, interviewing autistic adults about every clinic visit. Their picture of system-wide barriers supports Ami’s ER-specific gripe—poor autism knowledge is everywhere, not just the hospital hallway.

If you write behavior plans or safety protocols, expect your adult clients to hit the ER. Coach them to carry a brief autism factsheet for staff. Push local hospitals to add the free training tools that McGonigle et al. (2014) already built. One page and one email from you could turn the next crisis visit into a calmer, shorter stay.