Role of communication in access to healthcare for autistic adults v1.4
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The role of communication in access to healthcare for autistic adults
IRAS ID
325897
Contact name
Katy Greenland
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Cardiff University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
ES/P00069X/1, ESRC PhD Studentship Award
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
NB: This study uses ‘autistic’ rather than ‘person with autism’ following consultation with community leaders and the wider autistic community. However, individual participants’ language preferences will be respected.
Autistic people have unequal access to healthcare, have poor health outcomes, and on average, die younger than non-autistic people. Communication is a barrier to effectively accessing healthcare for autistic people, but little research explores the communication between autistic people and their healthcare practitioners. This research hopes to help healthcare practitioners better understand how to communicate with autistic patients through the following objectives:
1. Exploring autistic patients’ perspectives of communication regarding their healthcare.
2. Exploring healthcare practitioners’ perspectives of communicating with autistic patients.
3. Examining the interactions between autistic patients and their healthcare practitioners within genuine healthcare consultations.
4. Analysing written documents provided to autistic patients regarding their healthcare.
The project will collect data over one year using a focused ethnographic design split into four stages:
A. Interviews with self-identified autistic adults aged 18+ (n=30)
B. Observing autistic adults’ healthcare appointments (n=30) and gathering relevant documents such as condition-specific information leaflets
C. Follow-up interviews with autistic adults after observing their appointments
D. Interviews with healthcare practitioners (n=15)The study will be multi-site (Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board) and multi-department (mental health, neurology and rheumatology). Autistic adults will self-refer into the study. Healthcare practitioners will be recruited on-site.
This research forms part of the research student’s PhD qualification. The Economic and Social Research Council fully funds her PhD project.REC name
West of Scotland REC 3
REC reference
23/WS/0185
Date of REC Opinion
23 Jan 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion