Editorial

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Advances in Autism, Volume 2, Issue 3.

Across health services the recognition and identification of people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is a complex issue and one that can be poorly understood outside of specialist services. This is particularly true of prison healthcare services. The first paper by Underwood and colleagues discusses the process of carrying out an ASD assessment and examines the extent of ASD in a local prison. Few studies to date have explored ASD traits among prisoners. This study identified high levels of unrecognised ASD traits among prisoners, many of who went on to meet diagnostic criteria. The study also examined that relying on self-referral or the ability of prison officers to recognise ASD, then many will remain unrecognised, highlighting the need for specialist assessment of autism within prisons and the wider criminal justice system.

The difficulties of recognition and the limitations of current autism screening tools is also a theme of the second paper from Kenny and Stansfield. This paper reports on a specialist diagnostic service and evaluates the use of a number of autism related screening tools and considers the usefulness of each of the aspects of the AAA and its use alongside the AQ-10. There is still wide variation in how people with ASD are diagnosed and the range of assessments to detect specific need in people with autism. The challenge whatever the service is that diagnosing autism is resource intensive and so how do we recognise those that need more detailed intensive assessments when simple to diagnose cases are missed. We welcome further papers on the issue of recognising and identifying adults with ASD across community and clinic-based settings.

The third paper is a welcome submission offering a wider perspective on the issue of research in ASD. Macedoni Luksic et al. examine the use of ontology-based text mining in the field of autism trend analysis. The purpose is to see if whether this method of inquiry can help us to understand and consider autism from a wider perspective. The study found that ontology-based text mining was effective in identifying the key research topics and their dynamics in the field of autism offering an insight into research dynamics using computerised methodology.

Finally we have two papers focusing on people with autism in receipt of secure services. The first of these by Baker and Shweikh reports the case of a woman with a history of offending. Diagnosed with severe personality disorder and gender dysphoria, the paper reports on previous prison experience and describes a novel approach to treatment and consideration of Asperger’s syndrome as a diagnosis. There is still little published on the needs on women with ASD and we welcome more papers on the health and social care needs of women with ASD from our readers. The final paper from Ghosh and Chaplin describes the experience from both the patient and psychiatrist perspective on being in secure care for people with autism. This paper demonstrates the issues faced and their interpretation from the different perspectives of clinical staff and service users who may have competing goals. Thank you for your continuing support of the journal and also a welcome to new readers. We welcome papers on the personal experience of people with autism receiving care or services, as it is often these perspectives that offer context and increased understanding to those working with or supporting people with autism.

Eddie Chaplin and Jane McCarthy