Hope Haven, a leader in developmental and educational services for children, is now the only provider in Northeast Florida to offer groundbreaking EarliPoint Autism technology, which is a new diagnostic tool designed for early detection of autism in young children.
According to Dr. Alison Cato at Hope Haven, the staff was given training pertaining to the new technology in May and it is now an offered tool.
EarliPoint uses advanced eye-tracking technology and state-of-the-art algorithms to identify early social and communicative patterns associated with autism, enabling diagnoses as early as 16 months old.
By incorporating EarliPoint, Hope Haven is transforming early autism care in the region.
This technology allows clinicians to observe a child’s visual tracking and responses to social cues, analyzing how the child engages with social stimuli.
The system generates insights about a child’s social development that traditional methods might miss.
“What captures their attention could be another child’s face (in the video), but for a child with autism they may be more interested in objects or movement in the scene instead of the human interactions,” Cato said.
Another aspect that differs with the new technology is that the test only takes 12 minutes compared to the 45 minutes to an hour a typical evaluation takes, where a doctor evaluates how a child interacts with toys, looking for repetitive tendencies in their play and then using their clinical judgment.
For children with autism, this means access to earlier diagnoses, paving the way for timely interventions that can significantly enhance social and cognitive development.
“Research consistently shows that early intervention can make a remarkable difference in the lives of children with autism,” said Stella Johnson, Hope Haven CEO. “With EarliPoint, we are able to provide earlier diagnoses and tailored support, which is critical during these formative years.”
For the families served by Hope Haven, the availability of EarliPoint brings new hope and confidence.
“Families are relieved to hear about the technology because before they may have been on a waiting list for longer,” Cato said. “To our knowledge, we’re the first to adopt this technology in Florida, and we’re excited to see how it can be even further used.”
According to Cato, the diagnosis of autism can also be important in leading to helping with the access to additional resources and the costs associated with it.
Hope Haven’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge tools like EarliPoint reflects its broader mission to ensure that every child can reach their full potential.
