Interprofessional Care Coordination for Pediatric Autism Spectrum Disorder: Translating Research into Practice

This chapter introduces this book and its central purpose. Autism spectrum disorder, its associated symptoms, and rising prevalence warrant service provision from several disciplines and professions. The rationale and benefits of interprofessional care coordination are discussed. The following chapters in this book are written by professionals from diverse fields to encourage and improve readers’ interprofessional care coordination.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social communication and interaction and is accompanied by restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The prevalence rates ofASD have dramatically increased in recent years with current estimates suggesting that 1 in 54 children (approximately 1.9%) in the United States have ASD (Maenner et al., 2020). The lifetime cost of education, healthcare, and other service needs for an individual with ASD can range from $1.4 to $2.4 million dollars (Buescher, Cidav, Knapp, & Mandell, 2014).