Information for Healthcare Providers

This site has information for health care providers, including information on screening tools and free educational materials to give to patients. “Learn the signs. Act early.” materials are not a substitute for standardized, validated developmental screening tools.

 

Milestone Checklists

Milestone Checklists
You can print out milestone checklists for parents to complete. You can give this to a parent before their child’s next well-child exam visit; they can bring it back filled out to use as a discussion guide for reviewing their child’s development.

 

Developmental Screening

Developmental Screening
Information on developmental screening especially for health care providers from CDC.  Includes facts, how to incorporate screening into your practice, research, interventions, and more.

 

Developmental Screening Tools
A list of developmental screening tools, both general and specific to autism.  Find descriptions of the tools, including sensitivity and specificity.

 

M-CHAT (Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers)
Download the M-CHAT, instructions and permissions for use, scoring instructions, and follow-up interview by clicking on the links below. The follow-up interview is designed to reduce the false positive rate (meaning children who fail the M-CHAT but are not likely to have an autism spectrum disorder).

Instructions and Permissions for using the M-CHAT
M-CHAT Scoring Instructions
M-CHAT Scoring Template
M-CHAT Follow-up Interview

 

Identification and Evaluation of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders
Detailed information on signs and symptoms so pediatricians can recognize and assess ASDs in their patients from American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

 

Guidelines and Recommendations
Find guidelines and recommendations related to developmental screening, developmental delays, and autism.

 

Developmental Screening/Testing Coding
This fact sheet for primary care pediatricians provides guidance on how to appropriately report limited and extended developmental screening and testing services from American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

 

Early Intervention

Act Early on Developmental Concerns: Partnering with Early Intervention
A presentation that offers health care providers a general overview of early intervention services as well as practical tips, resources, and tools for working with Early Intervention and community services from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

 

Autism

Autism Information
Information from CDC on autism, including information on research being conducted by CDC, other federal agencies, and states, in addition to resources and activities for children to help them learn about autism.

Caring for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Resource Toolkit for Clinicians
A clinical resource to assist in the recognition, evaluation, and ongoing management of autism spectrum disorders throughout the patient’s lifespan from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

 

Share the Campaign with Colleagues

Healthcare providers are important motivators of health behavior change according to our research.  Not only can you help families learn about developmental milestones and act early if there’s a problem, but you can influence the community at large.

• Interested in sharing information on the “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” campaign with your colleagues? You can order a free set of flyers to distribute by clicking here
  
  
• The campaign has developed a brief PowerPoint presentation for sharing at professional meetings or societies. This presentation includes speaker ’s notes and is designed to give an overview of the campaign and provide information on obtaining the free resources. Click here to download the presentation (3.88Mb zip file).
  
  
• Link Your website to Ours -- and Encourage Others to Do So as Well!
  The best way to help people in your community learn more about your organization and the campaign is to link the two together – literally – on the website. We have developed a button that provides an icon, Web address, and description to help you put a link on your site. Click here for everything you need!