Consensus of physician behaviours to target for early diagnosis of cerebral palsy: A Delphi study.
AIMS
Historically, the diagnosis of cerebral palsy has been made after 12 months of age, delaying access to crucial early intervention that optimises functional outcomes. This study aimed to identify and specify priority physician diagnostic behaviours to target in implementation interventions to increase the rate of diagnosis of cerebral palsy under 6 months of age in Australia.


METHODS
We conducted a two-round online Delphi study with a multi-professional expert panel of cerebral palsy researchers and clinicians. A reference group identified a six-item list of potential diagnostic behaviours, which were modifiable at the individual level, that could lead to an early cerebral palsy diagnosis. In the first survey, participants rated the importance of each item on a 10-point Likert scale and supplied their reasoning for this, and were able to suggest new behaviours. In the second survey, participants ranked items in order of priority.


RESULTS
All six items reached consensus for inclusion (100%). No new items were added to the list. Ranking identified the top three priorities for online physician implementation interventions: (i) refer for or conduct the General Movements Assessment; (ii) refer for or conduct the Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination; and (iii) communication of the diagnosis.


CONCLUSION
An online Delphi method can effectively inform tailored implementation intervention development. A consensus was achieved on the priority physician diagnostic behaviours to target in interventions to lower the age of cerebral palsy diagnosis in Australia.
['McNamara|Lynda|L|0000-0003-3797-9278', 'Scott|Karen M|KM|0000-0003-0721-6675', 'Boyd|Roslyn N|RN|', 'Novak|Iona|I|']
D001315:Australia D002547:Cerebral Palsy D032921:Consensus D003697:Delphi Technique D042241:Early Diagnosis D006801:Humans D010820:Physicians D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
physician early diagnosis cerebral palsy Delphi technique implementation science