Tuesday, October 15, 2024
There are few specialists that serve adults with Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (NDD), and most adults with NDD receive care from providers without specialty training in NDD. Care for this population is highly variable, and patient and caregiver priorities in this age group are not well known. We aimed to explore individual and caregiver values around adult neurodevelopmental care.
In this qualitative study, we conducted 22 semi-structured virtual interviews from September 2021 to February 2022 with randomly selected adults with NDD and/or their caregivers. The need for adult neurodevelopmental care is growing as more individuals with NDD are living into adulthood. Better understanding of patient and caregiver values can help shape this emerging field to meet the needs of this unique, often overlooked and underserved, population.
Jessica Sanders, MD
University of Colorado
Assistant Professor
Jessica Sanders, MD is a neurodevelopmental specialist working in Developmental Pediatrics and Neurology at the University of Colorado in Denver. She has a particular interest in improving the transition from pediatric to adult care for patients with complex neurodevelopmental disorders as well as caring for individuals with developmental disabilities as they age. She dedicates time to clinical, research, and advocacy endeavors to improve access to and quality of specialized care for this vulnerable, aging population.