title: Diagnosing autism: Australian paediatric research network surveys.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with reported prevalence of more than 1/100. In Australia, paediatricians are often involved in diagnosing ASD and providing long-term management. However, it is not known how paediatricians diagnose ASD. This study aimed to investigate whether the way Australian paediatricians diagnose ASD is in line with current recommendations.
  
  
  METHODS
  Members of the Australian Paediatric Research Network were invited to answer questions about their ASD diagnostic practice in a multi-topic survey and also as part of a study about parents needs around the time of a diagnosis of ASD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The majority of the 124 paediatricians who responded to the multi-topic survey and most who responded to the parent needs survey reported taking more than one session to make a diagnosis of ASD. Most paediatricians included information from preschool, child care or school when making a diagnosis, and over half included information from speech pathology or psychology colleagues more than 50% of the time. The main reasons for not including assessment information in the diagnostic process were service barriers such as no regular service available or long waiting lists. More than 70% reported ordering audiology and genetic tests more than half of the time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Not all paediatricians are following current recommendations for diagnosing ASD more than 50% of the time. While there are good reasons why current diagnostic approaches may fall short of expected standards, these need to be overcome to ensure diagnostic validity and optimal services for all children and their families.
authors.affiliation: School of Allied Health, Australian Catholic University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Melinda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Randall
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Natalia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Albein-Urios
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brignell
authors.affiliation: Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children's Hospital, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Population Health, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Alisha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gulenc
authors.affiliation: Developmental Medicine and Victorian Paediatric Rehabilitation Service, Monash Children's Hospital, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hennel
authors.affiliation: Latrobe Regional Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Coates
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Population Health, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Child Health Research Unit, Barwon Health, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Christos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Symeonides
authors.affiliation: Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children's Hospital, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Harriet
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hiscock
authors.affiliation: Developmental Medicine, The Royal Children's Hospital, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Marraffa
authors.affiliation: Child Development Unit, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Silove
authors.affiliation: Community Health, Sydney Children's Hospital Randwick, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Vivian
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bayl
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Paediatrics, Sydney and South Western Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Woolfenden
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Developmental Medicine, The Royal Children's Hospital, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|Developmental Medicine and Rehabilitation, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Katrina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Williams
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis*; D035843:Biomedical Research; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010372:Pediatrics; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: autism; paediatric practice; survey