Project Description

Challenge

Many autistic children experience high levels of emotional and behavioural challenges that are often long-lasting and stressful. Parents and caregivers play a powerful role in supporting their kids’ emotional wellbeing. Research has shown that certain factors (such as caregiver mental health, social connections, and access to services) can influence autistic children’s wellbeing in important ways.

Strengthening parenting skills has also been shown to improve children’s wellbeing, especially when families are experiencing stress. Despite this knowledge, Canadian autism services rarely ask about—or act upon—these known factors affecting child health and family wellbeing. Too often, the families needing the most support face the greatest barriers to access.

The project team will address this problem by testing a program called the Family Check-Up® within a large autism service.

Family Check-Up® Project Summary

The Family Check-Up® is a strength-based, family-centred program aimed at improving child mental health by working with parents/caregivers to:

  • identify their family’s unique strengths and challenges,
  • set goals for change,
  • strengthen positive parenting, and
  • connect to needed supports.

Family Check-Up® can be delivered in various places and across cultures. In the long term, the project team aims to expand Family Check-Up®’s ecological model within other autism services, to ensure that child and family wellbeing is addressed early and effectively.

Funding Partners

Kids Brain Health Network – $199,936
McMaster Children’s Hospital Autism Program, Hamilton Health Services – $502,718 in-kind

Contributions as of February 2023

Team

Principal Investigators

Dr. Teresa Bennett, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Irene Drmic, Hamilton Health Sciences, McMaster Children’s Hospital

Co-Investigators

Dr. Eric Duku, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Julia Frei, Hamilton Health Sciences, McMaster Children’s Hospital
Dr. Stelios Georgiades, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Andrea Gonzalez, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Magdalena Janus, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Melissa Kimber, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Ellen Lipman, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Paulo Pires, Hamilton Health Sciences, McMaster Children’s Hospital
Dr. Heather Prime, York University
Dr. Caroline Roncadin, Hamilton Health Sciences, McMaster Children’s Hospital
Dr. Mackenzie Salt, Offord Centre for Child Studies, McMaster University
Dr. Anat Zaidman-Zait, Tel-Aviv University