Academic and Community Partnerships to Address Disparities in Autism Diagnosis

Background: Children of color receive an autism diagnosis later than White/Caucasian children.  Our prior research explored this issue and identified three factors contributing to this disparity: 1) parent/provider knowledge; 2) challenges navigating complicated service systems; and 3) limited parental advocacy skills.  Methods: A partnership with a pediatric hospital, a university research institute and community service providers was developed to address these needs.  We took on a data-and community-driven process to adapt an intervention that can be conducted in community settings. Working groups comprised of parents, providers and promotoras (Latina community health workers) were convened to develop content, approaches and activities for a community-based intervention.  A total of nine different community-based organizations participated in this process alongside the academic/clinical partners.  Results: The resulting curriculum was developed in full collaboration with this group. The curriculum was designed specifically for Latino parents and, with this in mind, culturally appropriate examples, terms and “dichos” were included to ensure cultural relevancy. The resulting 6-lesson curriculum has been piloted with promotoras and is currently being implemented in community settings. Conclusions: Community and academic partnerships are integral to the design and implementation of successful community-based interventions.  Such partnerships ensure both local and scientific expertise inform the development of the intervention. In order to have a successful result, the partnership should be approached with the most important ingredients for a successful collaboration including respect, trust and accountability. This success of this partnership provides an example for those hoping to develop culturally-relevant and commuity-driven interventions through partnering with a community or academic institution.