Autism as Representative of Disability.

Pediatricians care for many children with autism spectrum disorder who demonstrate a wide range of abilities and needs. This population is vulnerable because of lags in diagnosis, difficulty accessing services, overlooked medical conditions, behavioral difficulties during medical visits, parental stress, bullying, comorbid mental health issues, and variable transitional care moving from adolescence to young adulthood. Comprehensive care includes earlier recognition of symptoms with timely referral to early intervention services.

Developmental and Interprofessional Care of the Preterm Infant: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Through High-Risk Infant Follow-up.

Practices in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) that reduce infant stress and respond to behavioral cues positively influence developmental outcomes. Proactive developmental surveillance and timely introduction of early intervention services improve outcomes for premature infants. A model that emphasizes infant development and a continuum of care beginning in the NICU with transition to outpatient monitoring and provision of early intervention services is hypothesized to support the most optimal outcomes for premature infants.