Mental health Project ECHO Autism: Increasing access to community mental health services for autistic individuals.
Nicole Ginn Dreiling, Michal L Cook, Elena Lamarche and 1 others
PMID 34218685WHAT IT FOUND
Community mental health providers who completed a 6-month tele-mentoring program reported significantly higher confidence, knowledge, and problem-solving skills for treating autistic clients.
The program improved provider self-efficacy in adapting CBT and managing co-occurring conditions, but did not measure actual patient outcomes.
Key findings
01Providers showed significant improvements in self-efficacy, autism knowledge, and clinical problem-solving skills after the training.
02The training specifically increased confidence in adapting CBT, using visual supports, and managing behaviors like anxiety and ADHD in autistic clients.
03Providers' written responses to clinical vignettes shifted from generic therapy advice to specific evidence-based strategies for autism after the program.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was a pilot with no control group, so it is impossible to know if the improvements were due to the training or other factors like the passage of time or participants' initial enthusiasm. Most data came from self-reports, which can be influenced by social desirability, meaning providers may have reported what they thought the researchers wanted to hear. The sample was small (51 providers) and predominantly female and White, limiting how well the results apply to other groups. The study measured provider knowledge and confidence, not actual patient outcomes. It did not assess whether clients' mental health improved as a result of the providers' training. The long-term effects of the training are unknown, as the study only measured immediate changes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest. The research was supported by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the North Carolina Area Health Education Centers.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this training improves patient outcomes. The study only measured provider confidence and knowledge, not whether autistic clients actually got better. Also, without a control group, we cannot confirm that the training itself caused the reported improvements.