Effect of Family Navigation on Participation in Part C Early Intervention

Objective: Part C Early Intervention (EI) services have been shown to reduce autism symptoms and promote healthy development among young children. However, EI participation remains low, particularly among children from structurally marginalized communities. We investigated whether family navigation (FN) improved EI initiation following positive primary care screening for autism compared to conventional care management (CCM).

Methods: We conducted a randomized clinical trial among 339 families of children (ages 15-27 months) who screened as having an increased likelihood for autism at 11 urban primary care sites in 3 cities. Families were randomized to FN or CCM. Families in the FN arm received community-based outreach from a navigator trained to support families to overcome structural barriers to autism evaluation and services. EI service records were obtained from state or local agencies. The primary outcome of this study, EI service participation, was measured as the number of days from randomization to the first EI appointment.

Results: EI service records were available for 271 children; 156 (57.6%) children were not engaged with EI at study enrollment. Children were followed for 100 days after diagnostic ascertainment or until age 3, when Part C EI eligibility ends; 65 (89%, 21 censored) children in the FN arm and 50 (79%, 13 censored) children in the CCM arm were newly engaged in EI. In Cox proportional hazards regression, families receiving FN were approximately 54% more likely to engage EI than those receiving CCM (1.54 (95% confidence interval: 1.09-2.19), P = .02).

Conclusions: FN improved the likelihood of EI participation among urban families from marginalized communities.