Pediatrician reported experiences of transitioning adolescents with disabilities.
Amy J Houtrow, William H Burr, Chloe A Somberg and 3 others
PMID 41860103WHAT IT FOUND
Pediatricians report starting transition planning at age 17.4, three years later than recommended.
Only one in five provide all four key transition services, with most citing a lack of dedicated staff and adult providers willing to accept patients with disabilities as major barriers.
Key findings
01Pediatricians reported that transition planning should begin at an average age of 17.4 years for patients with disabilities.
02Only 22.7% of pediatricians reported providing all four transition services to most or all their adolescent patients with disabilities.
03The majority of pediatricians identified adolescents' lack of self-advocacy knowledge, lack of available adult physicians, and lack of staff as major or moderate barriers.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study relies on self-reported practices, so it does not measure what actually happens in clinical encounters. The response rate was 33%, which required statistical weighting to correct for bias. The study is cross-sectional, meaning it cannot determine if the reported barriers directly cause poor transition outcomes. The sample is limited to US pediatricians who are members of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Declared interests
The authors received no financial support and declared no potential conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the low rate of comprehensive transition services as a failure of individual pediatricians' intent. The data show that systemic barriers, such as the lack of adult providers willing to accept patients with disabilities and the absence of dedicated office staff, are the primary drivers of this gap.
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 →