Autism Care Network

The Network's aim is to provide comprehensive, high-quality care by teams of healthcare professionals who understand autism spectrum disorders and excel at treating associated medical conditions including the sleep disturbances and gastrointestinal problems that can vex children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families. The Network's mission is to create a sustainable system for care delivery, research, evidence development, and dissemination while striving for optimal health and quality of life for all individuals with autism spectrum disorders.

Nationwide Children's Hospital is a legacy Autism Care Network site – an elite designation in the field of autism treatment and research. As part of the Network, Nationwide Children’s provides comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, care to children with autism and their families. Coordinated subspecialty care such as Sleep, Genetics, Neurology and Gastroenterology as well as Family participation play a vital role in our Family Centered Care approach.

Nationwide Children’s Hospital provides diagnostic, assessment and Care Coordination at our site, located in Westerville. Our dedicated Care Coordination team supports families in assessing recommendations and designing next steps for children diagnosed with autism. Nationwide Children's practices “Whole Care for the Whole Child".

Watch The Autism Care Network Video

Interdisciplinary Care

Many Network sites use an interdisciplinary approach when evaluating a child for autism. Simply put, an interdisciplinary team is made up of a variety of professionals from different backgrounds who work collaboratively with you and your child. 

Interdisciplinary teams engage in discussions to ensure the most accurate diagnosis for a child. For example a Developmental Pediatrician, Psychologist, Neurologist, Social Worker and Speech and Language Pathologist will all work together during a child’s assessment simultaneously to provide a comprehensive diagnostic view of the child. This interdisciplinary approach is the preferred method as it will reduce the number of appointments children need to attend while maximizing the expertise by infusing the team with many professional views of the child. 

Below is a possible list of the many disciplines you may encounter:

• Genetics
• Psychology
• Sleep Medicine
• Gastroenterology Specialist
• Occupational Therapist
• Speech Therapist
• Physical Therapist
• Behavioral Specialist
• Psychometrician           
• Primary Care Physician
• Complementary & Alternative Medicine Specialist
• Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrician