Autism Program

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The Autism Program at Children's Specialized Hospital works with children from birth through 21 years of age, who have an autism spectrum disorder (Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder or Rett's Syndrome).
The Program is dedicated to improving the lives of children, adolescents and families with autism spectrum disorders by providing comprehensive evaluations, treatment, community education and research.  We are one of the few Programs in New Jersey to provide coordinated multidisciplinary care for children, adolescents and families affected by an autism spectrum disorder.

Evaluation

The Program provides a menu of assessment options including:

Developmental Screening Clinic - Evaluates children ages 12 months-48 months whose family or pediatrician feel are exhibiting some type of developmental delay or be at risk for autism. Trained Pediatric Nurse Practitioners provide clinical screening assessments to determine appropriate referrals for diagnostic evaluations and interventions.

Autism Team Evaluations - A comprehensive, multi-disciplinary evaluation for children who have not been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder but who have a combination of language, social, or behavioral concerns. Our team consists of expert Developmental Pediatricians, Child Psychologists, Speech Therapists, and Occupational Therapists who are each trained indscipline tools designed for this population of children. Evaluations typically involve three visits. Standardized assessments include administration of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI) and measures of cognitive functioning and self-help skills. A formal Speech- Language evaluation and Occupational evaluation are conducted in a team format.  Written strategies and suggestions that may immediately be implemented will be provided on the day of the evaluation.

ADOS/ADI evaluations - These assessments are available to families and physicians and can be used in combination with a neurodevelopmental evaluation when a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder is suspected but the child may already have had other evaluations. Our licensed Child Psychologists have been trained to administer gold standard assessment tools. Single-discipline Neurodevelopmental, Speech/Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Educational, Physical Therapy, Nutrition, Feeding Team, Augmentative Communication, or Audiological evaluations are also available.

Treatment

Based upon each child or adolescent's level of need, therapeutic recommendations are made to one of our many programs or to other programs and services in the community.  Services may include specialized Early Intervention (for ages 0-3 years old),  individual or group therapies (Speech/Language, Occupational, Psychological, Physical, or Social Skills) or behavioral consultation/skills teaching. Recommendations may also include specialized educational services through the child/adolescent's local school district.

Resources

An extensive folder of autism resources is provided to families. Additionally, there are autism resource books and other material available in the Parent Resources areas.

Research

We are conducting various clinical studies related to improving diagnosis and treatment for children, adolescents and families affected by autism spectrum disorders. Recent or ongoing studies include an NIH-sponsored study of children with a regressive form of autism, genetics of autism, medication studies, validation studies for new diagnostic tools, determination of diagnostic pathways, and evaluation of the effectiveness of treatment.

Community Education

Staff of the Autism Program routinely provide workshops and training to various community and professional groups on topics related to autism spectrum disorders. Additionally, staff are available to provide staff training or behavioral consultation to schools or other organizations.

Teamwork

Children's many experts are available, as needed, for children or adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. These experts may include:

For further information

For general autism information or to schedule an appointment, for an Autism Team evaluation, please call 1-888-CHILDREN (244-5373), ext 5166.
For information regarding the Developmental Screening Clinic, please call 1-888-CHILDREN (244-5373) ext. 5226.