Autism & Developmental Medicine Institute
A whole new perspective on the evaluation and treatment of children with special developmental needs.
Autism & Developmental Medicine Institute Research
At ADMI, we want to learn more about your child’s special developmental needs. ADMI's innovative approach to patient care includes a robust research team investigating the causes of and treatment approaches to neurodevelopmental disorders.
About the institute
The Autism & Developmental Medicine Institute (ADMI) integrates diagnosis of children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders with evidence-based interventions, research and training. In addition to its team of physicians, psychologists, genetic counselors, speech language pathologists, behavioral analysts and other staff, ADMI includes experienced researchers who aim to advance the understanding of causes and treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders.
Together, we can work toward improved outcomes for children with special developmental needs. As partners in your child’s developmental healthcare, we will be able to take the first steps in making improved care a reality.
An innovative approach
Geisinger is a health system that fosters learning. At Geisinger’s Autism & Developmental Medicine Institute (ADMI), we want to learn more about your child’s developmental needs. For many families affected by neurodevelopmental disorders, current treatments are not optimal. We believe that fully understanding these disorders is the key to developing new and more effective treatments. ADMI’s innovative approach to comprehensive assessment, intervention, and family support is integrated with a robust research team investigating the underlying causes of neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as behavioral and medical treatment approaches.
Our families
Our team isn’t complete without our families. We have a team of specialists in many different fields ready to explore the questions we all still have about your child’s developmental needs. But we need input from the most valuable specialists of all – our families.
Please consider joining forces with the ADMI team. At ADMI we understand the importance of establishing new facts and reaching new conclusions in order to make progress. We cannot do this without your help. We need to work together to generate the knowledge today that will lead to the treatments of tomorrow.
Faculty and Investigators
Study participation
We believe that each family has something valuable to contribute; our goal is 100% participation by our families. Families choose to participate in studies for many different reasons, including a desire to learn more about the developmental needs of your child, and in some cases, the chance to try new treatments or therapies. People gain satisfaction from knowing they have made a significant contribution to advancing scientific knowledge, even if there is no immediate benefit for their families.
The ADMI team wants to learn more about:
- Typical and atypical child development
- Human behavior
- Genetics of autism and neurodevelopmental conditions
- Advancing technology for diagnosing and treating disease
- Developing the best education programs for our patients, families, educators and community
What types of studies are available at ADMI?
At ADMI, we are interested in finding out more about brain development. There are many factors that influence brain development, including age, individual experiences, and our genetic makeup. For this reason, every individual in a family can participate in our research!
When the entire family participates in research, scientists and clinicians can better understand which parts of a disorder are related to genetic background and which parts are related to a stage of development.
How to get started:
- Talk with your clinical care team to determine which studies are most appropriate for you and your child and discuss exactly what is involved.
- Take the opportunity to ask your clinical care team any questions you might have.
- Enroll in a study and help us investigate the underlying causes of neurodevelopmental conditions as well as treatment approaches.
You and your child can participate in as many studies as you like and ask questions at any time. If you decide you no longer want to participate, you can stop at any time—this will not affect your child’s care at ADMI.
SPARK
SPARK is an online research study for individuals with autism and their families. Geisinger ADMI is one of over 20 clinics and research centers across the country helping to spread the word to families about this project. We need your help to speed up research and advance our understanding of autism!
Join SPARK today, at no cost to you or your family, by going to SPARKforautism.org/geisingerADMI. If you participate, you will be asked to share information about medical and family history, as well as provide a saliva sample for genetic studies. You can participate in the study from home or contact the SPARK research team at ADMI to learn more or get help signing up by calling 570-522-9402 or emailing SPARK_ADMI@geisinger.edu. Together, we can spark a better future for individuals and their families affected by autism.