Caregiver Perspectives on Telehealth Assessment and Other Supports for Infants with Early Developmental Concerns.
Daltrey Schmidt, Chloe Urias, Sarah Dufek and 1 others
PMID 39066971WHAT IT FOUND
Nineteen caregivers of infants with early developmental concerns felt uncertain and dismissed by providers.
They valued live telehealth sessions and written reports for validation and advocacy, and wanted navigation help, parent coaching, and connection with other families.
Key findings
01Caregivers often felt their early concerns were dismissed by pediatric providers, leaving them lonely and uncertain.
02Caregivers rated live telehealth sessions most helpful and used written reports to advocate for further evaluations or therapy.
03Families wanted practical guidance for navigating services and parent coaching.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample was small, mostly white, highly educated, and high income, so it does not represent many families. Caregivers were interviewed retrospectively after a 30-month outcome visit, so later diagnoses may have shaped their memories. Families with negative views of the earlier study may have declined, and interviewers were research team members. The study reports experiences and preferences, not whether telehealth assessment or any support improved child development. Infants had early concerns on the Infant-Toddler Checklist, but many outcomes were not autism; findings are about pre-diagnostic uncertainty, not a specific diagnosis.
Declared interests
Funded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. No author conflicts of interest are reported in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that telehealth assessment improves infant development or speeds diagnosis. This study reports caregiver experiences and preferences, not tested child outcomes.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →