POLICY AND ANALYTICS CENTER
DIRECTOR OF THE ANALYTICS AND POLITICS CENTER: LINDSAY SHEA
There is an urgent need for understanding how life unfolds across the lifespan for people on the autism spectrum. Medical and clinical interventions are vital. But we must also learn about the experiences that help or hinder quality of life for people on the autism spectrum, their families, and our communities. Experiences such as transition into adulthood, employment and continued education, living arrangements, and community participation are understudied.
Click below to learn about Policy and Analytics Center projects
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Policy and Analytics Center Ongoing Projects
Certified Autism Peer Specialist (CAPS) Project
- Principal Investigator: Lindsay Shea, DrPH
- Funder: Community Behavioral Health (CBH) through the Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) and the Urban Health Collaborative (UHC)
- Description: Young adults and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are largely underserved and disconnected from resources that would contribute to higher rates of life satisfaction and personal wellness. To address this need, the Policy and Analytics Center is collaborating with Community Behavioral Health (CBH) through the Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) to create a Certified Peer Specialist (CAPS) pilot service for individuals with ASD over 14 years old in Philadelphia. This initiative is divided into several subsections including: Curriculum development and review, training development and review, implementation, sustainable practices, and outcome development and tracking.
Alternative Approaches to Supporting ASD Services for Young Adults
- Principal Investigator: Lindsay Shea, DrPH
- Funder: National Institute Of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health
- Grant Number: 1R01MH117653-01
- Description: Given the recent increased number of adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the lifelong presentation of ASD, and the under-researched changes in the needs of adolescents with ASD as they age, examining healthcare access and service use among adolescents with ASD as they transition into adulthood is critical to developing an efficient and effective system of care. Alternative Approaches to Supporting ASD Services for Young Adults examines the eligibility for healthcare coverage and healthcare service use in the Medicaid system among adolescents with ASD they age into adulthood by: studying the effects of state Medicaid policies and programs on adolescents with ASD to remain eligible for Medicaid as compared to their counterparts with intellectual disability (ID); studying types and quantities of Medicaid-funded services used by adolescents with ASD as compared to adolescents with ID; and by interviewing states to understand state-specific factors that may impact eligibility or service use for adolescents with ASD as they transition to adulthood.
Select Publications:
- Shea, L. L., Field, R., Xie, M., Marcus, S., Newschaffer, C., & Mandell, D. (2019). Transition-Age Medicaid Coverage for Adolescents With Autism and Adolescents With Intellectual Disability. American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities, 124(2), 174-185.
- Shea, L. L., Xie, M., Turcotte, P., Marcus, S., Field, R., Newschaffer, C., & Mandell, D. (2018). Brief Report: Service use and associated expenditures among adolescents with autism spectrum disorder transitioning to adulthood. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 48(9), 3223-3227.
Policy and Analytics Center Completed Projects
Philadelphia Autism Centers of Excellence Evaluation
- Principal Investigator: Lindsay Shea, DrPH
- Funder: Community Behavioral Health (CBH) through the Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS)
- Description: The goal of this project was to examine the effectiveness and impact of the Philadelphia Autism Centers for Excellence across multiple domains. This publicly-funded evaluation helped Community Behavioral Health (CBH) through the Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) to learn more about the experiences of individuals receiving autism services from local agencies that have been designated as Philadelphia Autism Centers of Excellence by using: analysis of Medicaid claims and encounter data, surveys of family members of individuals receiving services through the Philadelphia Autism Centers for Excellence, focus groups with the Philadelphia Autism Centers for Excellence staff and family members, targeted individual interviews, and chart audits. Agencies include Special People in Northeast (SPIN), the NorthEast Treatment Center (NET), and Child Guidance Resource Center (CGRC). The results of the evaluation provided guidance and concrete recommendations to improve the service experiences of individuals with autism and their families in the City of Philadelphia.
Summit on Birth to Five System Navigator for Autism and Developmental Disabilities
- Funder: Children with Special Health Care Needs Mini Grant through the City of Philadelphia
- Description: A Summit on Birth to Five System Navigator for Autism and Developmental Disabilities was hosted on June 30, 2018. The Summit convened stakeholders including family members and systems that serve children with autism and other developmental disabilities in the birth to five age range. The goal of the Summit was for attendees to learn and provide feedback on existing service navigator models and discuss options and opportunities for creating a system navigator role for autism and developmental disability services. For more information visit: www.paautism.org/phillyautismproject/Community/System-Navigation-Summit