Developmental Behavioral Clinicians' Perspectives on Education Transitions for Young Children with Developmental Disorders.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore developmental behavioral clinicians' (DBP) perspectives on transitions between education programs for children age 8 and younger with developmental disabilities.

Method: We used a qualitative descriptive design to systematically gather and analyze DBP clinicians' perspectives. Most of the 25 participants were members of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics (SDBP). Interviews were conducted between June and October, 2022. Audio recordings of the interviews were transcribed. We used MAXQDA software for thematic analysis.

Results: We organized categories regarding barriers and facilitators of educational transitions according to the child and family and broader community levels and identified four major themes: (1) acknowledging that families play critical roles in education transitions; (2) communicating effectively at the intersections of the families and education and health care systems; (3) helping families navigate health and education systems and make education transitions; and (4) overcoming systems-level issue.

Conclusion: Organizational and systemic barriers often impede DBP clinicians' ability to be involved with education transition activities. Education transitions often exacerbate underlying inequities in access to assessment, care, and outcomes among children with developmental disabilities from historically minoritized populations. Our data prompted us to propose a new framework that features the intersections among child and family, health care, and education teams. We found innovative ways for coordinating education transitions by cultivating relationships among children and families and professionals in health care and education systems.