Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex life-long neurodevelopmental disorder that affects just over 1% of the UK population. This means that the average practice of 7000 patients will have about 70 patients with ASD. It can be very challenging for general practice to meet the health care needs of this population, but with some adjustments and increased awareness among staff, it is possible to improve access to health care.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Autism Alliance. www.autism-alliance.org.uk.

Baron-Cohen

Leslie

Frith

(1985) Does the autistic child have a “theory of mind”? Cognition 21(1): 37–46. doi: 10.1016/0010-0277(85)90022-8.

Buckley, C. (2016). Consulting with a patient with autism. InnovAIT. 10(6), 370–371. doi: 10.1177/1755738016666302.

Department of Health. (2015). Statutory Guidance for Local Authorities and NHS Organisations to Support Implementation of the Adult Autism Strategy. Retrieved from www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_ data/file/422338/autism-guidance.pdf.

Heslop, P. (2014). Difficult to get a GP appointment? Barriers are even greater for people with autism. Retrieved from http://policybristol.blogs.bris.ac.uk/2014/08/05/difficult-to-get-a-gp-appointment-barriers-are-even-greater-for-people-with-autism/.

Hirvikoski

Mittendorfer-Rutz

Boman

Larsson

Lichtenstein

Bölte

(2016) Premature mortality in autism spectrum disorder. The British Journal of Psychiatry 208(3): 232–238. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.114.160192.

MacKay, T., Boyle, J., & Connolly, M. (2016). Intellectual disability amongst individuals with ASD. A systematic review and meta-analysis. Presented at Autism Europe, Edinburgh 2016, Abstract 531. www.autism.org.uk.

McElhanon

B. O.

McCracken

Karpen

(2014) Gastrointestinal symptoms in autism spectrum disorder: A meta-analysis. Pediatrics 133(5): 872–883.

RCGP. Autistic spectrum disorders toolkit. Retrieved from www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/toolkits/asd-toolkit.aspx.

10.

RCGP. Clinical module 2.02: Patient safety and quality of care. Retrieved from www.rcgp.org.uk/training-exams/gp-curriculum-overview/online-curriculum/working-in-systems-of-care/2-02-patient-safety-and-quality-of-care.aspx.

11.

RCGP. Clinical module 2.03: The GP in the wider professional environment. Retrieved from www.rcgp.org.uk/training-exams/gp-curriculum-overview/online-curriculum/knowing-yourself-and-relating-to-others/2-03-the-gp-in-the-wider-professional-enviroment.aspx.

12.

RCGP. Clinical module 3.11: Care of people with intellectual disability. Retrieved from www.rcgp.org.uk/training-exams/gp-curriculum-overview/online-curriculum/managing-complex-care/3.11-intellectual-disablity.aspx.

13.

Simonoff

Pickles

Charman

Chandler

Loucas

Baird

(2008) Psychiatric disorders in children with autism spectrum disorders: Prevalence, comorbidity, and associated factors in a population-derived sample. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 47(8): 921–929. doi: 10.1097/CHI.0b013e318179964f.

14.

Unigwe, S., Buckley, C., Crane, L., Kenny, L., Remington, A., & Pellicano, E. (2016). GPs’ perceived self-efficacy in the recognition and management of their autistic patients: An observational study. BJGP, in press.

15.

University of Bristol. (2013). CIPOLD (confidential inquiry into premature deaths of people with learning disabilities). Retrieved from www.bristol.ac.uk/cipold.

16.

Viscidi

E. W.

Triche

E. W.

Pescosolido

M. F.

McLean

R. L.

Joseph

R. M.

Spence

S. J.

Morrow

E. M.

(2013) Clinical characteristics of children with autistic spectrum disorder and co-occurring epilepsy. PLoS ONE 8(7): e67797, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0067797.

17.

Weigelt

Koldewyn

Kanwisher

(2013) Face recognition deficits in autism spectrum disorders are both domain specific and process specific. PLoS ONE 8(9): e74541, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074541.

18.

Westminster Commission on Autism. (2016). A spectrum of obstacles. Retrieved from https://westminsterautismcommission.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/ar1011_ncg-autism-report-july-2016.pdf.

19.

WHO. (2016). International classification of diseases 10. Retrieved from http://apps.who.int/classifications/icd10.

Making your practice autism friendly

Abstract

Get full access to this article

References