'We are doing damage control': Government stakeholder perspectives of educational and other services for children with autism spectrum disorder in South Africa.
Sarosha Pillay, Madeleine Duncan, Petrus J de Vries
PMID 36510832WHAT IT FOUND
Government stakeholders in South Africa described autism services as reactive 'damage control' due to fragmented departments and lack of data.
They proposed ten strategies, including better inter-departmental collaboration and earlier school entry, to address the crisis of children waiting for education.
Key findings
01Stakeholders viewed service delivery as reactive 'damage control' because departments work in silos and lack clear ownership of autism responsibilities.
02A major barrier is the lack of shared data, such as the education waiting list being inaccessible to health and social development departments.
03Proposed solutions included formalising collaboration between departments, providing intervention while children wait for school, and starting school earlier.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The sample consisted of only six senior government stakeholders from one province, which limits the generalisability of the findings to other regions or levels of staff. No individuals with autism or their families were directly involved in the study, so the findings reflect only the government perspective. The study was conducted in the Western Cape, which is considered better resourced than other provinces, so the situation elsewhere may be worse.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. Funding details are not explicitly stated in the provided text beyond the ethical approval references.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the ten proposed strategies as evidence that they have been implemented or that they work. They are expert recommendations from a small group of officials, not tested interventions with proven outcomes.