Boston, Sept. 07, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) launched the first-ever standard set for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) treatment outcomes for children over 18 months old through adulthood. The Autism Spectrum Disorder Standard Set (ASDSS) was developed by a group of international autism experts and can be implemented by all clinicians who provide autism therapy, regardless of treatment method. The adoption of this set will enhance the standard of care for people with autism by aligning all parties involved in an individual’s treatment and arming patients with data to help them make informed decisions.
Prior to the ASDSS, a standardized measure of autism therapy outcomes did not exist, making it very difficult for clinicians, patients and caregivers to compare the results of different treatment modalities. Once implemented globally, the ASDSS will drive value-based healthcare by allowing the autism community to clearly discern which care methods are more effective in treating different symptoms of ASD. The set will also help protect patients against therapies that are not effective or scientifically based.
Dr. Ivy Chong, BCBA-D, chair of the ASDSS working group, expressed her gratitude for being part of the development of the set. “It was a privilege and incredibly humbling to chair the working group for the development of the ASDSS,” she said. “I hope the adoption and implementation of these standards will align patients, providers and payers alike, to drive access to an enhanced standard of care for individuals, no matter the setting. I look forward to continuing this work for years to come and thank the partners, project team and ICHOM leadership for making this possible.”
During the consumer review period, a large group of external stakeholders from around the world validated the ASDSS. Over 85 percent of psychiatrists, psychologists, occupational therapists, applied behavior analysts and researchers approved the recommended outcomes, and 75 percent of stakeholders agreed with the recommended measures. Now that the set has been reviewed and finalized, clinicians are encouraged to begin implementing the ASDSS. ICHOM will work to gather data from implementation pilots that emerge across the globe to evaluate care outcomes and inform future iterations of this set of standards.
“For people with autism and their caregivers, the results of therapy are what matter most,” said Dr. Zofia Das-Gupta, director of outcomes research for ICHOM. “The ultimate goal of the ASDSS is to create a world where patients can ask their providers about meaningful outcomes and clinicians can respond with data-driven answers. This will protect patients from harmful or ineffective treatments and allow them to review the facts before making care decisions.”
Founded in 2012 by professor Michael Porter of Harvard Business School, Martin Ingvar of the Karolinska Institute and the Boston Consulting Group, ICHOM has been working for the past nine years to establish standard sets in various medical practices. Through the development of these standards, ICHOM is redefining successful healthcare by improving care quality, reducing costs and arming patients with outcomes data so they can make informed choices.
The Autism Spectrum Disorder Standard Set
The ASDSS provides a set of recommendations for how treatment outcomes should be measured in clinical practice. It recommends measuring nine health outcomes covering four domains.
The nine health outcomes include:
- Restricted and repetitive behaviors
- Social communication
- Daily functioning
- Leisure
- Quality of life
- Family functioning
- Emotional regulation
- Anxiety
- Sleep issues
ICHOM ASDSS Webinar
ICHOM will be hosting a free webinar on Monday, Oct. 4, 2021 at 11 a.m. EST / 4 p.m. BST / 5 p.m. CET. to present the newly launched ASDSS. The virtual event will include a discussion around the project’s inception, ASDSS process, the final standard set, implementation of the standard on a global scale and how this will affect people with autism. People with autism and their families and caregivers are encouraged to attend to learn about how the ASDSS will enhance the standard of autism care.
Click here for more information and to sign up for the free ASDSS webinar.
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About The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement: ICHOM’s mission is to unlock the potential of value-based healthcare by defining global standard sets of outcome measures that matter most to patients and driving adoption and reporting of these measures worldwide to create better value for all stakeholders. Professor Michael E. Porter of Harvard Business School, the Boston Consulting Group and the Karolinska Institute founded ICHOM in 2012.
Visit www.ichom.org or contact info@ichom.org for more details.
