ABSTRACT

Purpose: This review aimed to 1) synthesize extant research on barriers to healthcare access experienced by persons with autism, their caregivers, and health-care providers; and 2) present a taxonomy of barriers to physical healthcare for individuals with autism.

Method: Systematic searches were conducted in five electronic databases. Methodological rigor was assessed using the Quality Assessment Tool for Studies with Diverse Designs. Thematic analysis was used to classify barriers and to develop a taxonomy.

Results: In total, 31 articles were included in the review. The resulting taxonomy consisted of four themes: 1) Challenges Associated with Autism-related Characteristics; 2) Health-care Provider-based Issues; 3) Healthcare System Issues; and 4) Patient-related factors.

Conclusions: Barriers to healthcare access for persons with autism are prevalent and occur at the patient, provider, and system levels. The taxonomy developed may facilitate measurement of barriers within health-care facilities and prompt identification of areas where interventions are warranted to improve care.

摘要

目的：本综述旨在 1) 综合现有关于自闭症患者、他们的照顾者和医疗保健提供者所经历的医疗保健获取障碍的研究；2) 为自闭症患者提供身体保健障碍的分类。

方法：在五个电子数据库中进行系统搜索。使用多样化设计研究的质量评估工具评估方法的严谨性。主题分析用于对障碍进行分类并制定分类法。

结果：共纳入31篇文章。由此产生的分类法包括四个主题：1）与自闭症相关特征相关的挑战；2) 基于医疗保健提供者的问题；3) 医疗保健系统问题；4) 患者相关因素。

结论：自闭症患者获得医疗保健的障碍普遍存在，并且发生在患者、提供者和系统层面。开发的分类法可能有助于衡量医疗保健设施内的障碍，并迅速确定需要干预以改善护理的领域。