The impact of the medical home on access to care for children with autism spectrum disorders

J Autism Dev Disord. 2015 Mar;45(3):636-44. doi: 10.1007/s10803-014-2218-3.

Abstract

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) experience difficulty accessing health care services. Using parent-reported data from the 2009-2010 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, we examined whether having a medical home reduces unmet need for specialty care services for children with ASD (n = 3,055). Descriptive statistics and Chi square tests identified sample characteristics and examined the relationship between unmet needs and a standardized measure of medical home. Logistic regression models explored the individual impact of demographic, condition-specific and medical home variables on unmet need. Parents reported that nearly all children had a need for specialty services, 36 % had an unmet need, and 23.9 % had a medical home. Children who had fewer unmet needs were more likely to have received family-centered and coordinated care through a medical home, and this relationship remained significant even when demographic and condition-specific variables were taken into account. These findings suggest ways to improve access to care for children with ASD through enhanced family-centered and coordinated care within the medical home.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Child Development Disorders, Pervasive*
  • Child Health Services / statistics & numerical data*
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Health Services Accessibility / statistics & numerical data*
  • Health Services Needs and Demand / statistics & numerical data
  • Health Surveys
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Logistic Models
  • Male
  • Patient-Centered Care / statistics & numerical data*
  • United States / epidemiology