Examination of a Telehealth-Based Parent Training Program in Rural or Underserved Areas for Families Impacted by Autism

Behav Anal Pract. 2022 Dec 6;16(3):1-17. doi: 10.1007/s40617-022-00763-z. Online ahead of print.

Abstract

Families of children with disabilities in rural areas face challenges accessing services due to location and lack of health-care providers. Telehealth-based intervention can mitigate challenges in accessing services. The present study sought to replicate and extend the telehealth-based, behavioral parent-training program, the Online and Applied System for Intervention Skills (OASIS), utilizing a multiple-baseline approach. Four parent-child dyads participated, with all children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. All dyads resided in rural/underserved areas. All dyads demonstrated an improvement on skill and knowledge assessments. The mean gain from baseline-to-treatment completion on skills assessments was 80.9% (range: 67.6%-95.5% points). The mean gain on knowledge assessments was 35.3% (range: 19.0%-49.0% points). It should be noted that parent skill gains were maintained over time. The present results provided additional empirical evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of OASIS, a telehealth-based parent-training model.

Keywords: Autism; OASIS; Parent training; Telehealth.