Diagnostic Assessment for Autism/ASD
Following an initial consultation and possibly a developmental assessment (if the child is under 6 years old) I may suggest a formal assessment for Autism (ASD). An ASD assessment is multi-professional and I would at very least require a specialist speech and language assessment as autism is an impairment of social communication. I work closely with a number of speech and language colleagues.
When I have sufficient information I can proceed to an ADOS (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule) assessment. The details can be found under ‘services’ on my website.
Please note that this assessment cannot take place without sufficient information and observation from other sources / settings, as recommended under NICE guidelines. The required information would be clearly outlined in the initial consultation.
I can offer either:
An Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), which is a play based assessment conducted with the child, myself and a specialist speech therapist. It is a semi-structured assessment of communication, social interaction, and play (or imaginative use of materials) for individuals suspected of having autism. The assessment takes approximately one hour and forms part of the assessment for the child. The findings are assimilated with the previous assessment and reports and the result is then fed back to the parents. A detailed report is provided afterwards with recommendations regarding support that may be required.
I encourage parents to share reports with professionals and this would be at their discretion.
This is the most commonly used assessment and involves assessment of the child directly.
Or:
A Diagnostic Interview for Social and Communication disorders (DISCO – published by the National Autistic Society – Lorna Wing, 1999) is used to profile a child’s development and behaviour. The DISCO is a semi-structured interview designed to collect and code, in a systematic fashion, information concerning the child’s development from birth onwards. It is a recognised tool used for the different diagnosis of social and communication disorders. It has to be used with other sources of information, including observation in structured and unstructured situations, psychological examination, medical investigations and education and social services record (as applicable).
The interview (with parents) takes at least 3 hours and cannot take place without preparation (reading of additional reports and assessment of the child at a different time). The interview and assessment are carried out by myself.
Both assessments are recognised under NICE guidelines
