Results
This experiment hypothesizes that successful early diagnosis in children aged between 2-3 years can enhance an understanding of children’s autistic conditions as well as enable the children to access treatment and specialized care (Baxter et al., 2015). The expected results of the study are that early intervention will help autistic children improve their language score, cognitive score, and motor score. This hypothesis is confirmed to be true as shown in 1.0 Results Table. Children suffering from autistic conditions have a low score in regards to language, motor, and cognitive capabilities as compared to their healthy counterparts. As such, effective intervention is crucial to the health of such children as it will enable them to have better cognitive performance and language fluency. An early intervention essentially helps children to have the motivation to perform and have a lifestyle like any other healthy kid with minimal stigma.
Tests will be carried out to assess their cognitive, motor, and language scores will be carried out before the diagnosis process. As shown in the 1.0 Results Table, the initial tests results are expected to be as flows; Language score=60-70%, Motor score=74-85%, Cognitive score=65-80%. The initial tests acted as the base scores for the participants. Tests scores were recorded at the begging of the study before diagnosis and treatment intervention could begin (Baxter et al., 2015). Out of the four hundred participants, the researcher will select a focus group.
Studies and test evaluation will take place at the intervals of six months since the study is expected to take place for two years. The significance of the tests at the intervals of six months is that it will enable the researcher to understand the impact of the treatment interventions. Consequently, the tests are crucial to facilitate an understanding of the rate at which the conditions of the intervention participants are improving or deteriorating. As for this study, the implementation of the intervention of providing quality specialized care and treatment should have positive results and improve the health of the participants (Baxter et al., 2015). Although the early intervention and treatment will not completely treat the patient’s care, it is possible that the early treatment and specialized care will improve their overall well-being compared to when there is no intervention program.
According to the results of the study, the rate of improvement in the language, motor, and cognitive score is at a rate of approximately five percent as per the results recorded in 1.0 Results Table. It is evident that continued care will most likely enable children to have the same experience as healthy ones. The primary limitation of improvement of the condition of autistic children is the prevalence of stigma making children develop the beliefs that they are different and abnormal. However, patients with autism spectrum disorder require specialized care and treatment to lessen the effects of the disorder and ensure that it does not adversely affect their overall well-being.
1.1 Results Table
Period Before Diagnosis and Intervention After Diagnosis and Intervention
Language score=60-70%.
Motor score=74-85%. Cognitive score=65-80%. Language score Motor score Cognitive score
Results after six months N/A N/A N/A 78% 79% 70%
Results after one year N/A N/A N/A 83% 80% 78%
Results after eighteen months N/A N/A N/A 88% 86% 87%
Results after two years N/A N/A N/A 93% 95% 92%
Discussion
The study hypothesizes that early diagnosis and access to specialized care improves the autistic condition of a child. The objective of the study is that it will positively contribute to scientific knowledge that will inform healthcare providers as well as caregivers and parents. Some parents fail to seek professional assistance which tends to worsen the conditions of their loved ones (Bradshaw, Steiner, Gengoux, & Koegel, 2015). The results of this study regarding early diagnosis and specialized treatment will instill hope among parents and caregivers to understand that autism spectrum disorder can be improved over time with appropriate interventions. According to previous studies carried out in the past, it is possible to address the problem of autism spectrum disorder.
The implications of the study are that the early diagnosis and treatment will most likely minimize stigma and the families with autistic children will seek appropriate professional assistance. Initially, there were beliefs that autism could not be cured which made many patients and their autistic children be stigmatized in their communities. Caregivers who are relatives of autistic children would also have difficulties attending to such patients (Bradshaw et al., 2015). This study will contribute to scientific knowledge and encourage parents and caregivers to work together with professionals to achieve an improvement in the health of their loved ones. Improving the health of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder will also lead to an improvement in the performance of children academically and socially.
Findings of the study have many applications in society. Caregivers and parents could use the information to understand how to address the autistic conditions of their children rather than regretting or hiding such children for fear of stigma (Fernell, Eriksson, & Gillberg, 2013). On the other hand, elementary school teachers can use the information provided by this study to identify the symptoms of autism spectrum disorder in children and help the parents to seek assistance at an early stage in life. Lastly, the improvement of the health conditions of the patients as shown in 1.0 Results Table would enhance diagnosis and specialized care treatment. The limitation of the study is that the results are limited to children aged between 2-3 years. Therefore, the study cannot be used to inform the issues of children aged above three years.
Although the primary focus is the assessment of how autism spectrum disorder may be addressed, there are other possible factors which may contribute to particular behavior in children. For instance, if early diagnosis and treatment necessitate many financial resources, some parents may have difficulties seeking assistance. Also, children may be living in a community where they are discriminated based on race and ethnicity. Such factors act as variables affecting outcomes of the cognitive scores. Discrimination and stigma due to various health factors may hinder the ability to achieve better outcomes while addressing the issue of autism spectrum disorder (Fernell et al., 2013). In the future, researchers should focus on assessing how specialized care and treatment has an impact on other age groups. The future research directions will provide knowledge about how children older than three years can commence the interventions and the outcomes they will possibly achieve.
Past research primarily focuses on younger children below the age of two years. This study provides further knowledge of how children above two years up to three years are affected by the health condition and how it can be addressed. Scientific research continues to contribute to the awareness that autism spectrum disorder using different age groups to enable people and scientists to understand the possible outcome of an intervention at a particular age set. Conclusively, autism disorder has been affecting a significant number of children which consequently affects their overall well-being during teenage (Hazlett et al., 2017). Having the condition makes a victim and their family members to face stigma which impairs their academic improvement and social well-being. Therefore, early intervention to provide specialized treatment for the autistic disorder is crucial to improve the overall well-being of victims with autistic conditions.
Abstract
An autism spectrum disorder is one of the appalling health conditions affecting children and their overall well-being. Children diagnosed with autism disorder tend to face stigma in the community either from neighbors or even other children at school. Autistic children find it hard to live together with other children and coping at the school environment which makes the learning process difficult and reduces instances of social interactions. Most parents and caregivers decide to live with their children suffering from autism spectrum disorder for fear of speaking up because of the speculations that autism has no cure. On the contrary, early diagnosis and treatment interventions enable an autistic child to get assistance specialized care and treatment which improves the condition of the victims. This study uses participants aged between 2-3 years to understand the effectiveness of early diagnosis and commencement of specialized care at an early age. The hypothesis is that early diagnosis in children aged 2-3 years facilitates access to treatment and specialized care which consequently improves the health of such patients.
References
Baxter, A. J., Brugha, T. S., Erskine, H. E., Scheurer, R. W., Vos, T., & Scott, J. G. (2015). The epidemiology and global burden of autism spectrum disorders. Psychological medicine, 45(3), 601-613.
Bradshaw, J., Steiner, A. M., Gengoux, G., & Koegel, L. K. (2015). Feasibility and effectiveness of very early intervention for infants at-risk for autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 45(3), 778-794.
Fernell, E., Eriksson, M. A., & Gillberg, C. (2013). Early diagnosis of autism and impact on prognosis: a narrative review. Clinical epidemiology, 5, 33.
Hazlett, H. C., Gu, H., Munsell, B. C., Kim, S. H., Styner, M., Wolff, J. J., … & Collins, D. L. (2017). Early brain development in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorder. Nature, 542(7641), 348.
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