Telehealth Coaching for Families of Children With Autism

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are increasingly being diagnosed in children, creating a pressing need for effective and cost-efficient models of early intervention (EI) services. Many EI systems are struggling to meet the needs of the increasing number of families of children with ASD. In rural areas, there is a shortage of EI therapists, and the distances to reach families results in an inefficient use of professional time and research shows that rural families of children with ASD receive fewer EI services, which has detrimental effects on children's developmental trajectories. If occupational therapy interventions for young children with ASD utilize innovative methods of service delivery in rural areas, investigators can increase the number of families that receive services thereby positively influencing child and family outcomes. Therefore, investigators propose to test the acceptability, cost-effectiveness, and efficacy of a 12 week telehealth intervention for families of young children with ASD.