For young children the Bayley Developmental Scales or Stanford Binet 5 (SB5) are comprehensive assessment and cognitive scales. SB5 can also be used for older children and adults used in Autism Assessment Caroline Ward Goldsmith
Observation of Function and Presentation
With updated protocols, revised algorithms, a new Comparison Score, and a Toddler Module, the ADOS-2 provides a highly accurate picture of current symptoms, unaffected by language, one of the many values of the update. It can be used to evaluate almost anyone suspected of having ASD from one year olds with no speech, to adults who are verbally fluent.
The ADOS 2 is the gold standard of Autism Observation. This is often used as a complimentary part of Autism Assessment. Caroline Ward Goldsmith uses ADOS 2 having attended training on how to use the instrument in the clinical setting at Trinity College Dublin Department of Psychiatry in order to keep up to date with the latest revisions of the instrument.
Developmental History & Differential Diagnosis
ADI-R Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised Edition provides a comprehensive look at the developmental history and helps to differentiate between common symptoms which can be present but which do not necessarily amount to an Autistic presentation. Caution is stressed in the new edition on looking at children with language dysfunction alone.
Adaptive Functioning Assessment
Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales second edition or VABS II looks at a range of adaptive functioning in order to provide pointers for intervention as well as an assessment of current functioning in communication, daily living skills, socialisation, motor skills and maladaptive behaviours. We need a range of skills to adapt to various environments such as home school work and leisure. They are related to walking talking interacting and coping.
A comprehensive autism assessment to serve the child/adult has many components…the clinical assessment fits them together and forms the basis of the diagnosis and interventions which will be most beneficial..