Background and objectives: Few studies exist regarding the management and support of adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in family practice. Most of them concern the management of children. As a primary care professional however, the general practitioner (GP) has a role to play at every step of the autistic adult's care pathway. With this study, we sought to identify GPs' experienced difficulties in caring for and managing their adult patients with ASD.
Methods: We conducted a qualitative study of 11 French GPs caring for adults with ASD via semistructured interviews and a thematic content analysis. GPs were recruited from 5 counties of the Grand Est Region (Marne, Haute-Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse and Vosges).
Results: All of the GPs described difficulties with the diagnostic process and the lack of initial training. Most of the respondents expressed difficulties with medical consultations of patients presenting an intellectual disability (ID) and with the lack of communication between GPs and mental health specialists during the patient care process. More than half of the GPs described difficulties with referral pathways for diagnosis due to lengthy delays and patient reluctance to seek psychiatric care. More than half of the respondents also experienced difficulties with providing proper social care, and with responding to patient distress due to their healthcare experiences.
Conclusion: Improving awareness and training about ASD in adults, as well as harmonizing the diagnostic process and referral pathways, might reduce GPs' experienced difficulties in caring for this population.
Keywords: adult; autism spectrum disorders; general practitioner; neurodevelopmental disorders; primary care; psychiatry.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous and lifelong disorder, which impacts the communication and social abilities of the person, including sometimes behavioral challenges. Adults with ASD are consequently exposed to psychiatric complications such as anxiety, depression, and suicide. The general practitioners (GPs) are on the frontline providing care for these patients. However, several studies show that GPs lack confidence in their ability to provide the best care for adults with ASD. We interviewed 11 French GPs from five counties in order to identify their difficulties managing adult patients with ASD. We found that they were challenged mostly by diagnostic and referral processes, by their lack of training, and by the insufficiency of communication with mental health specialists. These results highlight the need to organize and coordinate effective training in ASD and to facilitate the care process. This work also underscores the need for more collaboration and coordination between general practice and psychiatry in regard to a disorder for which both medical fields are needed. Addressing these issues is an opportunity to improve health care experiences for both patients and GPs.
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