Barriers to Screening Children <36 Months Old for Risk of Developmental Delay or ASD: 2002–2016
| . | 2002 . | 2016 . | P . | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % . | n . | % . | n . | ||
| Time limitations in current practicea | 79.5 | 522 | 57.2 | 465 | <.001 |
| Inadequate reimbursement for conducting a formal screeninga | 48.6 | 519 | 29.1 | 463 | <.001 |
| Lack of medical office staff to perform screeninga | 46.7 | 514 | 21.8 | 463 | <.001 |
| Language barriers (ie, physician or staff cannot speak language of family) | 18.3 | 517 | 21.8 | 463 | .17 |
| Belief that formal screening is not an appropriate role for the pediatriciana | 9.3 | 516 | 2.2 | 464 | <.001 |
| Lack of treatment options for positive screen resultsa | 9.1 | 515 | 21.4 | 464 | <.001 |
| Lack of confidence in ability to screena | 8.9 | 516 | 3.7 | 464 | .001 |
| Lack of knowledge regarding referral options for positive screen results | 8.1 | 514 | 9.7 | 462 | .38 |
| Lack of confidence in the validity of screening instruments | 6.8 | 512 | 5.0 | 461 | .22 |
| . | 2002 . | 2016 . | P . | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % . | n . | % . | n . | ||
| Time limitations in current practicea | 79.5 | 522 | 57.2 | 465 | <.001 |
| Inadequate reimbursement for conducting a formal screeninga | 48.6 | 519 | 29.1 | 463 | <.001 |
| Lack of medical office staff to perform screeninga | 46.7 | 514 | 21.8 | 463 | <.001 |
| Language barriers (ie, physician or staff cannot speak language of family) | 18.3 | 517 | 21.8 | 463 | .17 |
| Belief that formal screening is not an appropriate role for the pediatriciana | 9.3 | 516 | 2.2 | 464 | <.001 |
| Lack of treatment options for positive screen resultsa | 9.1 | 515 | 21.4 | 464 | <.001 |
| Lack of confidence in ability to screena | 8.9 | 516 | 3.7 | 464 | .001 |
| Lack of knowledge regarding referral options for positive screen results | 8.1 | 514 | 9.7 | 462 | .38 |
| Lack of confidence in the validity of screening instruments | 6.8 | 512 | 5.0 | 461 | .22 |
Question wording: “How strongly would you agree or disagree that the following are barriers to your screening children <36 mo old for risk for developmental delay or problem/autism?” Percentage of pediatricians responding strongly agree or agree is reported.
Result from the χ2 test indicates statistically significant difference in the distribution of the variable across years (P < .05).