Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru	National Assembly for Wales
Bil Awtistiaeth (Cymru) drafft	Draft Autism (Wales) Bill
Llythyr Ymgynghori DAB28	Consultation Letter DAB28
Ymateb gan | Evidence from Dr Dawn Wimpory

Please refer to questions in the Consultation Letter.

Question	Answer
01	Yes
02	I agree with using the ICD11 definition but not with Ministerial power to include other neurodevelopmental disorders
03	Yes and if NHS services for ASD are contracted out to private companies then these companies should also be bound by the act.
04	Yes
05	Ambitious but welcome
06	Ambitious but welcome
07	Ambitious but welcome
08	Yes
09	Yes
10	Yes
11	No
12	No
13	Yes
14	The above examples are all appropriate and the diagnostic numbers could and should then be used to give prevalence figures for all areas; this will help monitor whether ASD is being under or over-diagnosed. The system should identify whether diagnoses are made by contracted-in private services or by the NHS directly. Time from assessment to diagnosis should specify the initial date as the date of referral for asd assessment and presentation of the diagnosis to the parents/carers/service user as the diagnosis date. Almost all diagnoses are made within health services so it would be appropriate to use the ASD module within the CCH2000/CYPRIS database for the purpose of data collection for child diagnoses, especially as there exists 6yrs of data collection within this system for 6 counties already – this could serve as a comparison for ‘before and after’ periods preceding and following the advent of the Autism Bill. Adults, who receive an ASD diagnosis in childhood, are retained on this ASD module into adulthood. A comparable system could be drawn up for those receiving a diagnosis in adulthood and thereby benefit from the WG-funded pilot of the ASD module database in BCUHB which was established and has served appropriately as a pilot in anticipation of its extension as an all-Wales ASD database, for which the software is already in place. This ASD module, within the CCH2000/CYPRIS database, enables recording of co-morbidities, including PKU status.
15	On the face of the Bill
16	Yes
17	A regular cycle would be good, to add a new-impetus’ to awareness campaigning – but it should not be less than 3 yearly
18	It would be good if the Bill could stipulate the provision of quality admin support to ASD services, particularly within the NHS, so that ASD clinical staff are appropriately able to focus on the clinical needs of their service users, rather than be inappropriately tied up in bureaucracy and administration.
19	The primary problem in Autism is social-communication. It would therefore be appropriate for there to be more emphasis within this Bill on prioritising the access of people with ASD to therapies addressing social-communication. Eg, PACT has been evaluated through Random Control Trials including favourable evaluation of the effects of its delivery alongside and measured against Treatment as Usual (TAU) within the NHS. PACT is currently provided through ICF funding in combination with Musical Interaction Therapy (Interactive Music with Preschool Autism Communication Trail/Therapy; IM-PACT); IM-PACT is subject to service evaluation in West BCUHB.