1 19 General introduction Dutch Expertise Network “Autisme Jonge Kind” (AJK) Another important strategy designed to improve early detection and timely intervention of ASD in the Netherlands was the founding of a national interdisciplinary expertise network. This network, called the Dutch Expertise Network Autism in Young Children (in Dutch: Stichting Autisme Jonge Kind, AJK), was initiated by dr. Iris Servatius-Oosterling, dr. Claudine Dietz and prof. dr. Jan Buitelaar in 2013. The network brings together the expertise of specialized clinicians, scientific knowledge of researchers and parental experiences in the early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of ASD in children aged 0-6 years. AJK aims to improve early detection and, more importantly, timely access to intervention. To this end three innovations were introduced. First, an informative online platform for parents and professionals was launched in 2018 (www.autismejongekind.nl). This website, available in Dutch, English, Turkish and Arabic, offers easy and accessible information about the early indicators of ASD to parents and professionals. At the same time, the website spreads awareness about the importance of early detection and intervention. Second, a free e-learning platform for preventive care professionals regarding the recognition of the early signs of ASD and use of the CoSoS was developed. Lastly, the third component consisted of a relatively short and acceptable homebased early intervention offered to parents of infants and toddlers at elevated likelihood for ASD. This early intervention is called ‘BEAR’, short for ‘Blended E-health for children at eArly Risk’ and was developed by Dietz & Oosterling (2018) with vital input from other ASD specialists. The BEAR intervention will be further described below. The SCOPE project focusses on studying the outcomes of the BEAR intervention applied to families with very young children at elevated likelihood for ASD (see Chapter 6). BEAR intervention The BEAR intervention is a pre-emptive intervention offered by a first line healthcare professional, ideally supervised by a specialized mental healthcare professional. The primary objective of BEAR is to assist parents in understanding their child’s behavior, fostering sensitivity to the child’s needs, and, consequently, motivating the child to engage socially. The intervention is built on two well-studied principles, namely 1) high synchrony between parent and child is assumed to be related to decreasing the severity of autism symptoms, and 2) improved joint attention and joint engagement skills are associated with improved communicative abilities (Kaale et al., 2012; Kasari et al., 2012; Murza et al., 2016). Like other early interventions (for example: Pivotal Response Treatment, Floorplay, iBasisVIPP and JASPER-training), BEAR intervention techniques are rooted in evidence-based naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention principles (NDBI’s) (Bruinsma et al., 2020). The innovative value of BEAR lies in the combination of the a) very early start of intervention, b) easy accessibility with no waiting lists and the intervention conducted at home, and
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