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        Autism Research

        Telethon Kids' autism research takes place at CliniKids, a centre that integrates world-class research with a clinical service for children with developmental delay and/or autism and their families. Our team of researchers work in partnership with clinicians to give the community access to the world's best evidence-based therapies.

        CliniKids researchers investigate the early identification and support of autistic children. CliniKids research focuses on young children with developmental delay; therapies for autistic children; adolescent and adult outcomes; autism policy; and biological research.

        The team comprises more than 40 researchers and clinicians from a variety of backgrounds (psychology, speech pathology, occupational therapy, genetics, education, nursing, neuroscience). Researchers are funded through grants from the NHMRC, ARC, NIH and other competitive research funding bodies. The team collaborates with over 200 researchers from around the world, and is a prominent partner within the Autism Cooperative Research Centre.

        The team is also committed to the translation of scientific knowledge, as demonstrated through our work in scientific communication ('60 Second Science' video series, viewed by more than 1.5 million people), and our leadership on national policy (researchers led the development of Australia’s first guidelines for autism diagnosis and support for autistic children and their families).

        The CliniKids Team is focused on conducting research on the most pressing issues facing the autism community through:

        • Improving lives by discovering acceptable, feasible and effective/efficacious methods for reducing challenges associated with autism.
        • Connecting research outcomes to policy by working with the State and Federal Governments to develop evidence-based policy for autistic individuals.
        • Developing research infrastructure by creating a research base that can be connected to international research efforts.
        • Building a community and developing ways for the autism community to connect in a positive and beneficial way.

        Team highlights

        • The completion and publication of the first Australian clinical guideline for supporting autistic children and their families, which was endorsed by the NHMRC council in February 2023.
        • The completion and publication of the first Australian clinical guideline for ASD assessment diagnosis, which was endorsed by the NHMRC council in July 2018.
        • Completion of the Australian Autism Biobank, Australia’s largest repository of biological information collected form children with ASD and their families (>5000 biospecimens). 
        • Publication of more than 20 peer-reviewed papers;/year, including many in high-ranging journals (e.g., Pediatrics, Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Nature Communications).

        CliniKids

        Visit the site

        Team

        Leader

        Andrew Whitehouse

        PhD

        Angela Wright Bennett Professor of Autism Research at Telethon Kids and University of Western Australia; Director, CliniKids

        Email me

        Members

        Gemma Upson

        BSc MClinAud MBA

        General Manager, CliniKids

        08 6319 1840 0421 043 930 Email me

        Gail Alvares

        PhD

        Senior Research Fellow

        08 6319 1698 Email me

        Theresa Pastor

        BA Speech and Hearing Therapy (Hons)

        Clinical Services Manager

        08 6319 1272 Email me LinkedIn

        Sarah Pillar

        BSpchPath(Hons)

        Manager, Research Development; PhD Candidate

        6319 1832 Email me LinkedIn

        Aarti Saiganesh

        BSc (Hons), PhD

        Research Program Manager

        08 6319 1312 Email me

        David Trembath

        BaAppSc, MAppSc, PhD

        Honorary Research Fellow

        Email me

        Kandice Varcin

        M.Psych (Clinical), PhD

        Honorary Research Associate

        Email me

        Jess Reynolds

        BSc(Hons), BScTech, PhD W.Aust. SpecCertCR(Neuro) Melb.

        Project Manager

        6319 1266 Email me LinkedIn

        Abby Chee
        Senior Clinical Psychologist

        Senior Clinical Psychologist

        Alena Clark
        Project Manager

        Project Manager

        Ally Raphael
        Occupational Therapist

        Occupational Therapist

        Amanda Lewis
        Communications Specialist

        Communications Specialist

        Amy Deverell
        Development Specialist

        Development Specialist

        Amy Eaton
        Client Support Officer

        Client Support Officer

        Aria May
        Clinical Lead, Speech Pathology

        Clinical Lead, Speech Pathology

        Carla Hall
        Administration and Events Manager

        Administration and Events Manager

        Celine Bollinger
        Senior Administration Officer

        Senior Administration Officer

        Christina Then
        Client Support Officer

        Client Support Officer

        Claire Perrozzi
        Speech Pathologist

        Speech Pathologist

        Danae Day
        Client Support Officer

        Client Support Officer

        Debbie Eamer
        Project Officer

        Project Officer

        Diana Tan
        Honorary Research Associate

        Honorary Research Associate

        Emma Corry
        Speech Pathologist

        Speech Pathologist

        Emma Moon
        Administration and Events Coordinator

        Administration and Events Coordinator

        Felicity Rose
        Project Manager

        Project Manager

        Fleur van Dooren
        Project Coordinator

        Project Coordinator

        Gayle Hillen
        Senior Occupational Therapist

        Senior Occupational Therapist

        Georgina Earl
        Clinical Research Assessor

        Clinical Research Assessor

        Jenny Palmer
        Operations Coordinator, Inklings Pilot

        Operations Coordinator, Inklings Pilot

        Justina Sparks
        Project Manager

        Project Manager

        Kathi Roiger
        Clinical Research Assessor

        Clinical Research Assessor

        Kiah Evans
        Honorary Research Associate

        Honorary Research Associate

        Lauren McLellan
        Operations Manager, Inklings Pilot

        Operations Manager, Inklings Pilot

        Leah Meehan
        CliniKids Operations Manager

        CliniKids Operations Manager

        Lindy Henry
        Senior Clinical Research Therapist

        Senior Clinical Research Therapist

        Marie Rodatz
        Clinical Lead, Occupational Therapy

        Clinical Lead, Occupational Therapy

        Marisa Di Lorenzo
        Senior Speech Pathologist

        Senior Speech Pathologist

        Mei’en Lim
        Clinical Lead, Clinical Psychology

        Clinical Lead, Clinical Psychology

        Michelle Renton
        Senior Clinical Research Therapist

        Senior Clinical Research Therapist

        Nicki Williams
        Client Support Officer

        Client Support Officer

        Noor Chehayber
        Project Administration Officer

        Project Administration Officer

        Pip Comisky
        Operations Manager

        Operations Manager

        Rebecca Langford
        Senior Manager, Inklings Pilot

        Senior Manager, Inklings Pilot

        Rebecca Kuzminiski
        Project Coordinator

        Project Coordinator

        Sally Grauaug
        Senior Speech Pathologist

        Senior Speech Pathologist

        Samantha Rivers
        Senior Clinical Research Assessor

        Senior Clinical Research Assessor

        Sarah Cattermole
        Aboriginal Community Coordinator

        Aboriginal Community Coordinator

        Shane Lay
        Clinical Psychologist Registrar

        Clinical Psychologist Registrar

        Storme-Louisa Will
        Therapy Assistant ad JASPER Practitioner

        Therapy Assistant ad JASPER Practitioner

        Tarryn Culverhouse
        Occupational Therapist

        Occupational Therapist

        Related teams

        Autism Research projects

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        Developing national guidelines for intervention with children on the autism spectrum in Australia

        Learn more

        The CliniBank Study: A research project to improve future clinical supports for children experiencing developmental difficulties

        Learn more
        Other projects
        All Autism Research projects

        Autism research videos

        VIDEO

        10 things to know about autism

        10 things to know about autism

        Professor Andrew Whitehouse leads the Autism Research Team at Telethon Kids Institute, working with children with autism and their families to reduce the disability associated with the disorder. In this short video he shares his top ten things that everyone should know about autism spectrum disorder.

        Introducing CliniKids

        Sarah and Tristan's Story

        Introducing CliniKids: Sarah and Tristan's Story

        Parents Sarah and Tristan share their story of finding out their daughter Florence has global development delay and coming to CliniKids.

        Video

        The AICES Study

        Reports and Findings

        Show all
        February 2024

        Community perspectives on the appropriateness and importance of support goals for young autistic children

        Researchers do not know much about what autistic adults, parents and professionals think about support goals for young autistic children. People's views of support goals might also be influenced by their beliefs about early support more generally. This survey involved 87 autistic adults, 159 parents of autistic children and 80 clinical professionals living in New Zealand and Australia.

        Autism Spectrum Published research Autism Research Subsite: CliniKids
        Read more
        July 2023

        Parent-reported atypical development in the first year of life and age of autism diagnosis

        This study examined whether parent-reported atypical development in their child's first year was associated with age of diagnosis and age when parents first needed to consult a specialist about their child's development.

        Autism Spectrum Published research Autism Research Subsite: CliniKids
        Read more
        February 2023

        Profiles of circumscribed interests in autistic youth

        Circumscribed interests encompass a range of different interests and related behaviors that can be characterized by either a high intensity but otherwise usual topic [referred to as restricted interests] or by a focus on topics that are not salient outside of autism [referred to as unusual interests].

        Autism Spectrum Published research Autism Research Subsite: CliniKids
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        February 2023

        Characterizing restricted and unusual interests in autistic youth

        A broad range of interests characterized by unusual content and/or intensity, labeled as circumscribed interests are a core diagnostic feature of autism. Recent evidence suggests that a distinction can be drawn between interests that, although characterized by unusually high intensity and/or inflexibility, are otherwise common in terms of their content (e.g., an interest in movies or animals), labeled as restricted interests and interests that are generally not salient outside of autism (e.g., an interest in traffic lights or categorization), labeled as unusual interests.

        Autism Spectrum Published research Autism Research Subsite: CliniKids
        Read more