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Family-centered care (FCC) is widely established as the standard professional practice model in pediatric hospital settings (Arabiat, D., Whitehead, L., Foster, M., Shields, L., & Harris, L. (2018). Parents' experiences of family centred care practices. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 42, 39–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.06.012; Espe-Sherwindt, M. (2008). Family-centred practice: Collaboration, competency and evidence. Support for Learning, 23(3), 136–143. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9604.2008.00384.x). It embraces social work values that promote self-determination and family empowerment by positioning family members as partners in healthcare treatment, delivery, and decision-making (Kuo, D. Z., Houtrow, A. J., Arango, P., Kuhlthau, K. A., Simmons, J. M., & Neff, J. M. (2012). Family-centered care: Current applica?tions and future directions in pediatric health care. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 16(2), 297–305. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0751-7). To promote and advance FCC principles, healthcare organizations collaborate with patients and families as lived experience volunteers, or family leaders, to ensure program design and education reflect users' perspectives and experiences. Despite evidence for its efficacy and uptake (Arabiat, D., Whitehead, L., Foster, M., Shields, L., & Harris, L. (2018). Parents' experiences of family centred care practices. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 42, 39–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.06.012), translating FCC principles into practice can be challenging (McCarthy, E., & Guerin, S. (2022). Family-centred care in early intervention: A systematic review of the processes and out?comes of family-centred care and impacting factors. Child: Care Health and Development, 48(1), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12901). In this paper, we introduce an innovative training program for family leaders that embodies the core principles of FCC. The training program was developed in collaboration with families, healthcare and higher education stakeholders, and engagement specialists by a social worker in a pediatric rehabilitation setting in Toronto, Ontario. The program prepares family leaders to engage in teaching and facilitation roles in healthcare education. The Teaching and Facilitation Course for Family as Faculty is the first program of its kind in Canada and was recently recognized by the Health Standards Organization of Canada as a leading practice in healthcare. Since launching in 2019, over 50 participants connected with healthcare organizations across Ontario have completed the course. Graduates have partnered with educators in designing and facilitating over 85 initiatives and workshops across healthcare and academic institutions. The outcomes of a utilization-focused program evaluation, including the strengths and lessons learned are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative studies of autistic people's pregnancy experiences have indicated sensory and communication related barriers to accessing adequate prenatal healthcare. However, quantitative work on the topic is scarce. This online survey study explored pregnancy experiences among 417 autistic and 524 non-autistic people. Compared with non-autistic people, autistic people reported heightened sensory and physical experiences during pregnancy and were more likely to experience prenatal depression and anxiety. Autistic people experienced lower satisfaction with prenatal healthcare, including having lower perceptions of their relationships with healthcare professionals and greater difficulties with antenatal classes. This study identifies key adjustments that can be made to prenatal healthcare, including sensory and communication adjustments. The findings highlight the need for greater autism understanding and awareness among professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]