ArticleBMC psychiatry2023
Barriers and needs in mental healthcare of adults with autism spectrum disorder in Germany: a qualitative study in autistic adults, relatives, and healthcare providers.
Article in BMC psychiatry, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Barriers to Mental Healthcare for Autistic and Non-Autistic Adults: An Investigation of Number, Severity and Type of Barriers Encountered.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2026Article
- Article
- An overview of oxytocin integrative mechanisms in autism spectrum disorder.Discover mental health · 2025Review
- Real-world evaluation of prevalence, cohort characteristics, and healthcare utilization and expenditures among adults and children with autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, or both.BMC health services research · 2025Observational
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Autism.Current psychiatry reports · 2025Review
- Barriers to healthcare predict reduced health-related quality of life in autistic adults without intellectual disability.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2025Article
- Redefining communication in mental healthcare: generative AI for neurodivergent equity and non-verbal autistic inclusion.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Barriers and facilitators to primary healthcare encounters as reported by autistic adults: a qualitative study.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Purinergic Signaling in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Bridging the Gap between Cell-Based Strategies and Neuro-Immune Modulation.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- Sentiment analysis of post-COVID-19 health information needs of autism spectrum disorder community: insights from social media discussions.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Health-related quality of life in family caregivers of autistic adults.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAutism refers to a neurodevelopmental condition with characteristic impairments in social interaction and communication, restrictive and repetitive behaviors, as well as difficulties in sensory information processing and daily living skills. Even though symptoms persist from early childhood throughout the lifespan and often require long-term support, there is a lack of mental health services that sufficiently meet the needs of autistic adults. Previous evidence suggested individual, professional and structural barriers to healthcare for autistic adults. Here, using a peer research approach, we sought to systematically investigate barriers and needs in mental healthcare of autistic adults in Germany at the three relevant levels (individual, professional, structural) and from three relevant perspectives (autistic adults, relatives and healthcare providers), in order to obtain specific recommendations for optimized healthcare.
methodsMaximum variation sampling was used to account for the complexity of the research field. Semi-structured, open-ended interviews were conducted with autistic adults (n = 15) and focus groups with relatives/partners (n = 12), and healthcare providers of several professions (n = 15). Data analysis was performed using the codebook approach of thematic analysis.
resultsPoor mental healthcare of autistic adults in Germany was characterized by six central and overarching themes: (i) lack of knowledge about autism, (ii) a need for increased participation/involvement, (iii) consideration of autism-specific needs in treatment, (iv) lack of services, (v) limited access to services, and (vi) improvement of stakeholder collaboration. Themes were similarly reported across participants, emphasizing dissatisfaction in all stakeholders.
conclusionsWe identified major barriers to mental healthcare for autistic adults in Germany that affect autistic adults, but are also of concern to relatives and healthcare providers. Our results point to specific and generic areas for improvement, independent of stakeholder perspectives, which could guide future development of needs- and evidence-based services, recommendations and guidelines of mental healthcare for people with autism across the lifespan.
trial registrationThis study protocol was preregistered at the Open Science Framework ( https://osf.io/5x8pg ).
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.