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In Nigeria and South Africa, women often have less voice and are less visible given cultural norms and related gender stereotypes. It is important to understand parents' gender roles in the context of caregiving for children with autism spectrum disorder because inequality in caregiving roles may influence the health of children with autism and that of their parents. We explored the lived caregiving experiences of male and female parents with autistic children in Nigeria (n = 15) and South Africa (n = 10) using structured and unstructured questionnaire. Results showed that women often experienced stress in relationship to multiple and substantial caregiving roles while men commonly limited their caregiving roles based on a patriarchal ideology related to their culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about how parent health literacy contributes to health-related outcomes for children with autism. This mixed-methods study included 82 U.S. parents of a child with autism 2–5 years-old and sought to describe (1) health literacy dimensions, (2) how health literacy influences services use, and (3) health literacy improvement strategies. Results showed: autism information was accessed from multiple sources; understanding autism information involved "doing your own research"; autism information empowered decision-making; health literacy facilitated behavioral services use; health literacy influenced medication use; family and system characteristics also affected services use; autism education remains needed; services information is needed across the diagnostic odyssey; and greater scientific information accessibility would increase uptake. Findings demonstrate how parent health literacy affects services use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To inform Oregon's Title V needs assessment activities, we aimed to (1) characterize the state's subpopulation of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) with behavioral and mental health conditions (B/MHC) and (2) determine associations of care coordination with missed school days and unmet needs for this subpopulation. We analyzed 2009–2010 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs data on 736 Oregon CSHCN < 18 years, including 418 CSHCN with B/MHC. Among Oregon CSHCN with B/MHC: 48.9% missed ≥ 4 school days, 25% had ≥ 1 unmet health services need, and 14.8% had ≥ 1 unmet family support services need. Care coordination was associated with lower adjusted odds of ≥ 1 unmet health services need but was not significantly associated with missed school days or unmet family support services need. The approach to identify Oregon CSHCN with B/MHC may be adopted by other states endeavoring to improve health for this vulnerable subpopulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents of children with Autism experience high levels of stress. Resiliency is the ability to cope and adapt when faced with stressful events. This randomized, waitlist controlled pilot trial examines the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of an adapted virtual mind–body group intervention for parents of children with ASD. The intervention was feasible and acceptable. The immediate treatment group showed no difference in distress and greater improvement in resiliency and stress reactivity/coping relative to the delayed treatment group, (M difference 5.78; p =.038 and M difference 7.78; p =.001 respectively). Findings showed promising feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy for parents of children with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we developed a brief, English/Spanish bilingual parent-reported scale of perceived community autism spectrum disorder (ASD) stigma and tested it in a multi-site sample of Latino and non-Latino white parents of children with ASD. Confirmatory factor analysis of the scale supported a single factor solution with 8 items showing good internal consistency. Regression modeling suggested that stigma score was associated with unmet ASD care needs but not therapy hours or therapy types. Child public insurance, parent nativity, number of children with ASD in the household, parent-reported ASD severity, and family structure, were associated with higher stigma score. The scale and the scale’s associations with service use may be useful to those attempting to measure or reduce ASD stigma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of why parents use complementary health approaches (CHA) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is limited. We conducted a mixed methods study to better understand factors influencing parents’ decision to use CHA for ASD. Parent-reported data about CHA use were collected on a probability sample of 352 young children with ASD in Denver, Colorado; Los Angeles, California; or Portland, Oregon. Follow-back interviews were conducted with 31 parents. CHA use was negatively associated with older child age and positively associated with parents’ belief ASD has major consequences, living in Portland or Denver, and medication use. Nine themes help explain these results. Study findings may have utility for healthcare providers working with children with ASD and their families regarding CHA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]