Evidenced-Based Nursing Strategies for the care of Autistic Children with Communication Disorder - A Systematic Review

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental health condition, accounts for significant shortfalls in social interaction and communication in many children. Over the last decade, different treatment strategies with varying levels of evidence have been recommended and applied to meet specific needs of children. Nonetheless, there has also been a growing emphasis on the identification and utilization of evidence-based treatment strategies for autistic children. The aim of this study was therefore to explore available scientific literature to find evidence-based strategies for the care of autistic children with communication disorder. The findings in this study was aimed at aiding nurses to better understand how evidence-based strategies can serve the specific needs of autistic children and also to highlight the nurses’ role in providing quality care. Using a thematic analysis approach, the study engaged in a systematic review of literature involving seventeen (17) scientific papers published between 2007 and 2020. The literature for the study were collected from Cinal, Pubmed, PsychInfo, Google scholar, and Medline Ovid databases. Four main broad strategies were found and confirmed in the study as evidence-based strategies. These were entertainment-based therapy, early intervention, speech language pathology and computer-based interventions. While these broad interventions were not regarded as the only solution for the needs of every autistic child, it was found that their application resulted in significant improvements in the communication and social interaction of children. Continuous research on the application of these strategies was therefore necessary to ensure their effectiveness to attend to the specific needs of every child