Development of PREPARE for Autistic Adults: An Adult Autism Training for Resident Physicians Designed with Autistic Adults and Family Members.
Brittany N Hand, Daniel Gilmore, Holden DeVassie and 5 others
PMID 40151653WHAT IT FOUND
Residents and faculty told researchers that a new autism training for doctors needs to be short and flexible.
They said seven hours is too long, so the team cut it to five hours. They also asked for telehealth options and certificates to help fit it into busy schedules.
Key findings
01Participants identified time as the biggest barrier, leading the team to reduce the training length from seven hours to five hours.
02Faculty and residents emphasized that flexibility is essential for adoption, specifically requesting options for telehealth standardized patients and asynchronous viewing.
03Buy-in was considered necessary and could be improved by offering certificates for resumes and highlighting that the content applies to all patients, not just autistic adults.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
This study describes the development of a training program and gathers feedback on its design. It does not test whether the training improves physician care or patient outcomes. The participants were recruited from a specific region (mostly Ohio) and may not represent the views of all residency programs nationally. The sample size is small (37 total participants), which is typical for qualitative development work but limits the generalizability of the specific barriers identified. No autistic adults or family members participated in the focus groups; the advisory board guided the content development but did not provide the feasibility feedback analyzed here.
Declared interests
The article does not list specific funding sources or conflicts of interest in the provided text, though it notes that advisory board members are paid consultants.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this training has been proven effective. This paper reports on the design and feasibility feedback for the program, not on clinical outcomes or physician performance changes after using it.