Gilliam Autism Rating Scale???????????

[Gigglebizmizz]

My DD 4.5 was assessed recently by an educational pysch. Having just reread her report this morning have noticed that she got the teacher in her private nursery to complete the Gilliam Autism rating scale and that it came out that DD has a "very likely probability of autism".

So a couple of things

1. What is it can I view it online how is it scored etc etc.

1. Was it appropriate for the ed pysch to get said nursey teacher fill it out without my permission and then not let me hve access to it or to ask me to complete it as well?

I have sent the ed pysch strongly worded e-mail asking for sight of report. I don't think the nursey assistant knew what she was filling in either!!!!

As always appreciate your help chaps!!!

I don't know what it is, but you normally can't get these things online.

Sounds totally appropriate to ask a nursery teacher to fill in a questionaire about behaviour she has observed.

Does it matter if the nursery assistant knew what she was filling in?

Does a conclusion of "very likely probability of autism" not fit with your view of your DC?

This is not a dx of autism - what they are looking for is DC displaying certain traits in a variety of settings over a long period of time. They are looking for lots of people to all see the same thing..........

Then a paed they will have enough info to make a dx. ( An EP can't dx ASD)

Thanks Indigo to be honest I hadn't been thinking autism at all until Paed mentioned autistic spectrum disorder since then I have looked up symptoms etc and DD does tick a lot of the boxes. Was just a bit miffed that we haven't been allowed to see this report would prefer transparency in all aspects of DD's reviews. We are pushing hard for stage 4 assessment and the paed is playing everything down saying it is mild and she will be fine etc and let's just wait and see. We have made formal stage 4 assessment request and have a private educational pysch consultant assessment next week so think it would e helpful to see this "GARS" report.

Well AFAIK an EP, even a private one, can't dx ASD - so you might also need to see a paed privately.

It's all a lot to get your head round - but it does get better.

I never thought DS had ASD until someone else told me .

But that is great, it means that your DD is relatively mild (otherwise you would have known much earlier). And there is lots and lots of things you can do to help her - once you understand what her problems are.

Thanks ZZZZZZ must try and remember I am dealing with open reasonable people am a glass half empty kind of gal so need to be a bit more positive and stop thinking there is some huge conspiracy going on.

Indigo unfortunately there is a 3 month waiting list to be seen for the ADOS and we just feel time is running out a bit as DD starts primary 1 in Sept we thought if we get a private ed pysch report it might help us to get a statement.

Am sure it will all go well after all we are dealing with "open and reasonable people" lol (thinking happy positive thoughts!!!)

I dont think the forms should have been filled in without your knowledge but wish you good luck with dealing with open and reasonable people, you must live in a part of the country where people work more openly.

Take care, hope it works out well for you and your child.

Found these research papers.
Utility of the Gilliam Autism Rating Scale in Research and Clinical Populations,
An Evaluation of the Gilliam Autism Rating Scale,
and Long-term outcome of social skills intervention based on interactive LEGO© play
I hope this helps

Thanks Dolfrog. On reading through those articles it would appear that the GARS was developed to identify individuals with autism in a clinical setting and that in one study it consistently underestimated the likelihood that autistic children would be classified as having autism. It doesn't sound the best tool for the educational pysch to be using if you ask me should I flag this up with her or just wait and see what the ADOS test brings? I suppose I don't want to rock the boat too much with the ed pysch as she will be overseeing DD 's progress in new school. What other questionnaires/ reports do ed pyschs use and why has no-one else heard of this GARS???

Don't complain to the EP about choosing the GARS! All it will do is get her back up.

She has not made a dx. It is just one of many things to consider.

In the meantime keep researching ASD and think about whether or not it is a good dx for your DD. Girls with mild ASD don't behave anything like what you probably are imagining.......

If your child does not have ASD it is very unlikely they will get a dx of it.

I think it's one of those things that just provides them with a bit more information to work with, IMO. If they show possible ASD tendencies, they can look further into it. If they don't, they still don't disregard it, but they know they need to possibly change the approach or try different methods.

Gigglebizmizz

"What other questionnaires/ reports do ed pyschs use and why has no-one else heard of this GARS???"
I have not been on MumsNet for very long, but the impression I have got so far is that not many contributors research the many disabilities their children may have using research papers or medical research, which is a pity because then it would be possible to have a better quality of discussion and exchanging researched based information.
It took me a couple of minutes to find those research papers, and they are only a sample, and there are many more about the various forms and different types of syndromes which go to make up the autistic spectrum.
One of the best places to start any research is Wikipedia, sometimes not completely accurate but but has to provide research based support for the information being provided. Many of the references listed have a PMID link in blue. PMID stands for PubMed ID, and PubMed is the biggest online Medical Research paper Library, some 6 million research papers covering almost every medical issue. PubMed also allow you to create your own online research paper collections so that you can access researchy paper of interest when you need to. There has been some efforts to create a UK PubMed.
The issues and assessment procedures involved with all the aspects of autism are complex, especially as research is still very much ongoing, which will no doubt increase the number of issues and subtypes on the autistic spectrum. This has been the case with regard to the disability which affects all of my family Auditory Processing Disorder, which can be one of the multiple co - morbid issues which can combine to cause some the behaviours that define autism.

You can't get it online. I've tried. Paediatrician asked me to fill out a GARS questionnaire about my DS1. It would be one of many ways of working out whether it is likely that your child is autistic, it certainly wouldn't be used in isolation. It asks loads of questions about your the child (including some about child's development as an infant which presumably the nursery wouldn't be able to answer). There are different sections on social interaction, communication, behaviour etc.

I see no reason why the ed psych wouldn't let you see it. But neither do I think you need to be worried or angry just because she has used it as a tool in assessing your child.