Addressing Racial Bias in Autism – Helping Spanish-speaking families

BIS has been fortunate to receive an additional NIH research award to study if the NODA diagnostic assessment service could be an equalizer of sorts for underserved communities who suffer even more frustration when seeking a diagnostic assessment for their at-risk children. We are already working with 4 dedicated clinical sites to study the impact on NODA as a telehealth option for  ‘Rural families’; this additional NIH award helps us research value to the growing Spanish-language families.

This award will help us translate the current NODA app, connect families to bilingual clinicians EARLIER, and then issue written diagnostic assessments and Recommendations in the family’s native language. We’ll then evaluate if U.S.-based Spanish-speaking families who are seeking autism diagnostic assessments with ‘NODA Autismo‘ would experience improved access over the conventional access to diagnostic assessment for autism. Stay tuned.

Here’s a recent article that further validates the need for new approaches to overcome disparities for research and healthcare access associated with autism – ‘Autism Research’s Overlooked Racial Bias’.