Hi, I'm Lydia Meem, Clinical Psychologist and Founder of Autism Understanding Pty Ltd (ABN 68164519608), a clinical psychology practice specialising in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and other developmental disabilities in Newcastle NSW. I have previously worked in a special school for children with ASD, a mainstream independent school catering for children aged from 4-18 years, community-based and residential disability services, as well as health and family support settings.
In working with children, adolescents and adults with ASD and their families, I noticed that some of my clients had been previously assessed by another psychologist, but had not been referred on for an autism diagnostic assessment at that time.
I also noticed patterns in the way children and adolescents with ASD presented during the GMDS-ER, WPPSI-III and WISC-IV assessments. I wondered if other psychologists had also noticed these patterns in the approaches and performance of children and adolescents with ASD in developmental and cognitive assessments.
The aims of this questionnaire are to:
* gather baseline information about developmental and cognitive assessment of children and adolescents who have been diagnosed with ASD, who are suspected of having an ASD, and who are not suspected of having an ASD by Australian psychologists.
* to provide a case review tool which can be used by Australian psychologists to reflect on their assessment practices, and counted towards AHPRA's professional development requirements.
* to identify patterns of cognitive results or particular behaviours displayed during a cognitive assessment to be included in a screening tool so that children and adolescents with ASD can be referred on, diagnosed and can access appropriate interventions at a younger age. The earlier we pick up autism and intervene, the better the outcomes!
* to identify barriers to the referral and assessment of children and adolescents suspected of having an ASD, so that in future these barriers can be considered and addressed.
You can do the questionnaire as many times as you like with a different case each time. Clients do not need an autism diagnosis, we just need you to have completed a developmental or cognitive assessment. At the end of the questionnaire you will be able to print off a certificate to confirm you have taken part in the case review and the areas of reflection that are covered, to be counted towards AHPRA's CPD requirements.
We'd like to thank the Australian Council for Education Research (ACER) for supporting this research project by offering a 10% discount on their Psychology resources and products to participants. If you choose to complete the questionnaire, the last page will include a discount code you can use when ordering psychology items through the ACER website.
This research project has been approved by the Australian College of Applied Psychology Human Research Ethics Committee (ACAP HREC Approval Number: 116300114).
Thank you for considering participating in this case review process.
