title: Impact of Autism Navigator on Access to Services.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether access to an Autism Patient Navigator (APN) for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at <48 months of age would be useful and lead to more appointments with needed services.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included parents of 39 children diagnosed with ASD in a multidisciplinary clinic. After diagnosis, the patients were randomized to 4 groups: Medicaid early (n = 9) or late support (n = 9) and non-Medicaid early (n = 11) or late support (n = 10). Early access to the APN was at the family meeting and later at 3 months after diagnosis. Data included demographic information and completion by phone interview at 3 months postdiagnosis of a questionnaire on the usefulness of the assessment and parent's desire or ability to obtain recommended services.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Demographically, the groups were not different. Children were most frequently male, white, non-Hispanic, and non-Medicaid with a mean age of 35 months. In comparison with the non-Medicaid groups, the Medicaid groups more often endorsed the 9 questions on the usefulness of the assessment as being "A Great Deal" useful (p = .022). Groups with early support were more successful in scheduling or completing appointments for recommended services overall including medical, educational, therapeutic, and parent resource appointments (p = .031). Barriers to services or resources were reported by 35.9%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Parents of young children with Medicaid with a recent diagnosis of ASD found the assessment "very useful" compared with non-Medicaid group. The groups with immediate access to an APN were more successful with scheduling and completing appointments.
authors.affiliation: Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics and Psychology, Department of Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH.
authors.forename: Beth Mishkind
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Roth
authors.forename: Shanna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kralovic
authors.forename: Nancy J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Roizen
authors.forename: Sarah Cain
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Spannagel
authors.forename: Nori
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Minich
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Knapp
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000628:therapy*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008484:Medicaid / Q000592:standards*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D062526:Patient Navigation / Q000592:standards*; D014481:United States