The CHICA Developmental Screening Study

Between 12 and 16% of children in the United States have a developmental disability. Research has demonstrated that early intervention programs are not only essential for improved outcomes in these children, but also cost-effective. As a result, there has been a push within the pediatric medical community to identify children with developmental delays or disabilities as early as possible. Currently, most pediatric primary care providers do not use standardized methods for developmental surveillance and screening. Instead they rely on intuition and clinical judgment which has been shown to have limitations when compared with standardized screening methods. Researchers and physician organizations such as the AAP have called on pediatric primary care providers to institute a standardized approach for the identification of developmental delays that includes both developmental surveillance and screening. In fact, the AAP recently published an algorithm for developmental surveillance and screening within a primary care setting. Physicians, however, cite several barriers to the implementation of these recommendations within their practices, including lack of time, lack of office staff, inadequate reimbursement, and language barriers.

The investigators have developed a novel computer decision support system (CDSS) for implementing clinical guidelines and algorithms within pediatric practices called CHICA. The investigators believe that this CDSS has the potential to address the barriers cited in previous studies as obstacles specific to the implementation of developmental surveillance and screening within primary care practices. CDSS will allow for developmental surveillance and screening to fit within the workflow of a busy pediatric practice without requiring an additional investment of time on the part of the physician and without requiring additional office staff.

The aims of this study are to (1) Expand and modify an existing computer-based decision support system (CHICA) to include the 2006 AAP developmental surveillance and screening algorithm; (2) Evaluate the effect of the CHICA system on the developmental surveillance and screening practices of four pediatric clinics; (3) Evaluate the effect of the CHICA system on referrals for developmental and medical evaluations as well as early developmental intervention/early childhood services for those children identified as having concerning developmental screening results; and (4) Develop a cohort of children with identified developmental disabilities that can be followed over time in order to look at the end results/effects of developmental screening