We at the William James College INTERFACE Referral Service are keenly aware of the shortage of mental health providers of color and how racial inequities exist in medical and mental health care. The College’s Black Mental Health Academy, Center for Multicultural and Global Mental Health, and other programs and academic offerings are playing a critical role in reversing this trend. We invite you to read a statement from our Black Mental Health Graduate Academy Scholars, and to stand with us as allies to drive change and address systemic racism.

Autism Spectrum Disorders

Autism Spectrum Disorders

At INTERFACE Referral Service, we focus on connecting members of our communities with mental health providers. We also value the importance of learning about the mental health conditions that may be affecting your thinking, feeling, behavior, or mood.

Therefore, we have created "Mental Health Topic Pages". The majority of our topic pages will direct you to Network of Care Massachusetts! Network of Care Massachusetts has a library database of over 30,000 fact sheets and articles. Topics on behavioral health issues are written by leading experts and organizations in their fields.

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (ASD)

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder. It affects a person's behavior and makes communication and social interactions difficult.

ASD can range from mild to severe. The type of symptoms a person has and how severe they are varies. Some children may not be able to function without a lot of help from parents and other caregivers. Others may develop social and verbal skills and lead independent lives as adults.

Most people with ASD will always have some trouble communicating or interacting with others. But early diagnosis and treatment have helped more and more people who have ASD lead full lives and do things such as going to college and having a job.

ASD now includes conditions that used to be diagnosed separately. These include autism, Asperger's syndrome, pervasive developmental disorder, and childhood disintegrative disorder. Any of these terms might still be used by you or your doctor to describe your condition.

Source: Network of Care Massachusetts

To learn more, visit these Network of Care Resources:

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Autism: Behavioral Training and Management

Autism: Support and Training for the Family

Caring for Adults With Autism

Unproven Treatments for Autism

Autism and Vaccines

Recent articles about Autism Spectrum Disorders

How A Hospital And A School District Teamed Up To Help Kids In Emotional Crisis, by Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR, Jun 11 2021.
MMR vaccine does not cause autism, another study confirms, by Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez, CNN, Mar 4 2019.
Even with insurance, getting mental health treatment is a struggle in Mass., study says, by Liz Kowalczyk, Boston Globe, Dec 11 2018.

Additional Sources of Information

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder? Information about autism spectrum disorders, signs and symptoms, risk factors, diagnosis and screening, and treatments from the National Institute of Mental Health and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). General information from the Center For Disease Control (CDC) about autism spectrum disorders, including what ASD looks like in children and adults across different contexts. Also provides information regarding a large array of treatment approaches and interventions. There are links to videos, articles and new data and research.

The Autism Spectrum, by Steve Silberman, Temple Grandin, Alix Generous, Wendy Chung, Rosie King, Ami Klin, Derek Paravacini, Adam Ockleford, Ajit Narayanan, Faith Jegede Cole, Andrew Solomon, Carina Morillo, TED Talks, 2010. These are series of informative videos which strive to capture the perspective of practitioners, researchers and those diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, published Identification and Evaluation of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders in October, 2007.

Diseases and conditions: Autism spectrum disorder. General information from The Mayo Clinic about causes and symptoms of ASD. This article gives a clear explanation of the relationship between ASD and childhood vaccinations..

Autism: Recognition, Referral and Diagnosis and Management of Adults on the Autism Spectrum. A guide to help understand behaviors, symptoms, limitations, and challenges associated with caring for and living with an adult with ASD. Made by and with support from National Institute for Health and Clinical Experience (NICE, June 2012).

Massachusetts is leading the way in assessment and early identification of mental health concerns in children. Pediatricians are seeing a significant increase in visits for primary mental health needs, and William James INTERFACE is supporting families in making early connections as research has shown that early intervention leads to better outcomes.

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