The National Trust: A viable model of care for adults with intellectual disabilities in India.

The longevity of people with intellectual disabilities is increasing in developing nations. However, developing nations lack a proper system of care for aging persons with intellectual disabilities. Until now the care has been provided by parents and relatives in the home environment in developing countries, but this scenario is also changing; therefore, there is a strong need to explore a plan of care for this population which is also feasible and replicable. The National Trust is an autonomous body of the Government of India which has developed a comprehensive plan of care for adults with intellectual disabilities. In this article, the National Trust is discussed using a socioecological model. The replicability and suitability of this model for other developing countries are discussed.

Development of a scale for identifying autism spectrum disorder during early childhood.

CONTEXT: Assessment forms an important part of the early intervention in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). However, there is not much choice with regard to tools and methods for early identification and assessment of ASD. AIMS: The aim is to develop a scale for identifying ASD during infancy and early childhood by mapping empirically supported skill behaviors and excess behaviors. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: The study was conducted in community-based organisations and the local communities. Moreover, it employed a post facto research design, with survey method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Following the standard procedures to pool items and standardization, a scale was developed and administered to three groups of children (N = 190) including children with autism (n = 100), global developmental delay suggestive of mental retardation (n = 40) and neurotypicals (n = 50) in the age range of 1.5-6 years. The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behaviooural Disorders and Baby and Infant Screen for Children with aUtIsm Traits (BISCUIT) were the gold standards to diagnose ASD. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Descriptive statistics (frequency, percentages, median, and quartile deviation), Pearson's correlation, Cronbach's α, factor analysis, and binary logistic regression analysis with receiver operating characteristic curve were performed. RESULTS: The new scale also demonstrated a high diagnostic efficiency by yielding a hit rate of 0.89, specificity of 0.90, and sensitivity of 0.88. CONCLUSIONS: The new scale can be used for early identification of ASD in the Indian population, though further validation with large population is required.