Maternal Depression and Children with Autism Spectrum Disorde

Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is diagnosed with various measurement instruments. Maternal rating of the child's autistic behaviors is a major component of the diagnostic determination. Researchers report 45-55% of mothers of children with ASD self-report depression (2007, IAN.com). Findings also suggest that severely depressed mothers rate their children's symptoms as more severe than non-depressed mothers.;Accurate measurement is imperative for the administration of appropriate effective treatment as well as the proper allocation of healthcare's limited resources. Deleterious outcomes can be associated with misrepresentation of ASD; namely decreased family quality of life, and increased financial burden to society and misallocation of resources. Outcome measurements suggest a correlation between maternal depression severity and maternal rating of the child's symptoms.;This white paper is written as part of the requirements of a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree. It investigated the relationship between mother depression states and its effect on the child with ASD. A qualitative cross-sectional study utilizing three questionnaires: PHQ-9 self-report measured mother depression state, CARS2-QPC, and CARS2-ST questionnaires measured child ASD symptoms reported by mother and school psychologist. Low response rate resulted in the necessity for a change in healthcare system policy to identify and treat maternal depression in the mothers of children with ASD within their local school sites.