Cleveland Clinic Children’s Helps Pennsylvania Hospital Build Regional Autism Center

Fayette County, a rural region in the hills between West Virginia and Pittsburgh, has some of the highest rates of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Pennsylvania. A 2010 study found that of the county’s nearly 42,000 children ages 5 to 24, almost 450 had some form of ASD. And the number was expected to rise.

Highlands Hospital, a locally owned and operated 64-bed facility, had no program to address the region’s demand for ASD treatment. Neither did most other medical centers in the area. That’s what spurred Highlands Hospital CEO Michelle Cunningham to contact Cleveland Clinic Children’s Autism Development Solutions.

After a visit to observe the successful ASD program at Cleveland Clinic Children’s, Cunningham contracted experts there to help develop a similar program at Highlands. Now five years later, Highlands Hospital Regional Center for Autism is serving 17 students, ages 5 to 17, and six school districts. Outcomes have been so favorable and the program has grown so quickly that the center will open a new, larger location before the 2017-18 school year.

“They’re running our model,” says Travis Haycook, Assistant Director of Cleveland Clinic Children’s Autism Development Solutions. “Highlands’ program looks, operates and is equally trained as our flagship program at Cleveland Clinic Children’s, and they’re seeing the same results.”

Building an autism program from the ground up

Since 2007, Autism Development Solutions has helped institutions and communities around the U.S. grow autism diagnosis and treatment programs. Services range from on-call consulting for existing programs to on-the-ground assistance in building new programs.

“Highlands Hospital had no services for kids with autism when they contacted us,” says Haycook. “We helped them develop a much-needed program, step by step.”

Autism Development Solutions worked with Highlands Hospital to:

• Redesign a newly purchased building as a world-class ASD treatment and education center
• Recruit a program director
• Conduct a comprehensive, three-week training program for the new director — including training on management, day-to-day operations, and Cleveland Clinic’s Children’s model of ASD care (a combination of applied behavior analysis [ABA] and speech/language development)
• Develop curriculum
• Get licensed through Pennsylvania’s Department of Education
• Recruit clinical staff
• Conduct a two-week immersion training program in Cleveland for clinical staff, including teaching them Cleveland Clinic’s Children’s model of care and how to implement interventions
• Perform on-site visits to evaluate potential students

Highlands Hospital Regional Center for Autism opened in September 2011. It is Southwest Pennsylvania’s only multidisciplinary, comprehensive diagnostic center for children with autism and other developmental disabilities.

“Travis has been invaluable to us,” says Jordan Morran, the center’s director. “We have weekly coaching sessions by phone. He visits at least twice a year to review our program and documentation methods, evaluate our staff, and ensure we’re upholding Cleveland Clinic Children’s standards.”

Cleveland Clinic Children’s first autism affiliate

“The program is data-driven, and Highlands has performed very well,” says Haycook. “Metrics continue to show favorable results in how kids are progressing, quality of treatment, parent satisfaction, employee engagement, and program growth and sustainability. They’re operating at a high level.”

Due to its excellent outcomes, Highlands’ autism center became the first licensed affiliate of Cleveland Clinic Children’s Center for Autism in 2014. The designation allows Highlands to benefit from co-branding with Cleveland Clinic.

While most other Autism Development Solutions clients have not yet been approved to become Cleveland Clinic affiliates, notes Haycook, all benefit by learning Cleveland Clinic Children’s best practices. To date, Autism Development Solutions has 13 trained locations in 11 states.

Proven strategies serve a growing need

Cleveland Clinic Children’s program is working at Highlands.

According to Morran, since Highlands Hospital Regional Center for Autism opened, several students have overcome communication difficulties — a significant step in improving behavior, including alleviating aggression. Some have started using speech communication devices. Some have become able to initiate appropriate conversation in the community.

“That’s huge for families who have struggled for years with understanding a child’s wants and needs and managing their behavior,” says Morran. “One family hadn’t been able to eat in a restaurant for nine years, since one of their children was diagnosed with autism at age 3. We worked on skills with the now 12-year-old, such as sitting appropriately, waiting for food and using a fork. Eventually, his teacher and I joined him and his family for a meal out. It was really successful. School days go by quickly, but you never forget accomplishments like that.”

More stories like this are possible, says Haycook, yet the ever-growing population of Americans with ASD remains vastly underserved. According to the CDC, one in 68 U.S. children are diagnosed with ASD — one in 42 males.

“In Cleveland alone, we serve more than 100 kids with autism every day, yet we’re not even close to meeting the need, even in our home community,” says Haycook. “The U.S. needs more autism programs.”

For more about Cleveland Clinic Children’s Autism Development Solutions, call 216.448.6440 or visit http://my.clevelandclinic.org/childrens-hospital/medical-professionals/autism-development-solutions.