Manager, Research Development; PhD Candidate
BSpchPath(Hons)
Sarah Pillar is the Research Development Manager at CliniKids, at the Telethon Kids Institute. Her role revolves around the intersection between clinical and research work - getting research into clinical practice, and shaping clinical questions into research projects.
Sarah is a Speech Pathologist by background and she developed a passion for supporting children on the autism spectrum and their families through working directly with families in metropolitan and country WA. She is an ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale) trainer.
Sarah has been involved in a number of research projects at the Telethon Kids Institute, including research into pre-emptive intervention for infants, which supports the development of social-communication skills in the first year of life. Sarah was also a member of the team that developed Australia's first National Guideline for Supporting Autistic Children in Australia.
In 2019 Sarah illustrated a children’s book, bringing to life the words and experiences of children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). Titled: Sometimes I Find it Hard to Move my Body.
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Publications
April 2024
Community Priorities for Outcomes Targeted During Professional Supports for Autistic Children and their Families
Professional supports play an important role in aiding autistic children's learning, participation, and overall wellbeing. Yet, limited research exists on stakeholders' perspectives and preferences regarding targeted outcomes for children undergoing support facilitated by professionals.
Autism Spectrum Published research Autism ResearchApril 2023Estimated Therapy Costs and Downstream Cost Consequences of iBASIS-Video Interaction to Promote Positive Parenting Intervention vs Usual Care Among Children Displaying Early Behavioral Signs of Autism in Australia
The growing global prevalence of autism spectrum disorder is associated with increasing costs for support services. Ascertaining the effects of a successful preemptive intervention for infants showing early behavioral signs of autism on human services budgets is highly policy relevant.
Autism Spectrum Published research Academic Biostatistics Early Childhood Development Autism Research School Attendance Subsite: CliniKidsJanuary 2023The Utility of Natural Language Samples for Assessing Communication and Language in Infants Referred with Early Signs of Autism
Natural Language Sampling (NLS) offers clear potential for communication and language assessment, where other data might be difficult to interpret. We leveraged existing primary data for 18-month-olds showing early signs of autism, to examine the reliability and concurrent construct validity of NLS-derived measures coded from video-of child language, parent linguistic input, and dyadic balance of communicative interaction-against standardised assessment scores. Using Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT) software and coding conventions, masked coders achieved good-to-excellent inter-rater agreement across all measures.
Autism Spectrum Published research Language Development Autism Research Youth Mental Health Subsite: CliniKidsDecember 2022Continuity of temperament subgroup classifications from infancy to toddlerhood in the context of early autism traits
Our previous cross-sectional investigation (Chetcuti et al., 2020) showed that infants with autism traits could be divided into distinct subgroups based on temperament. This longitudinal study builds on this existing work by exploring the continuity of temperament subgroup classifications and their associations with behavioral/clinical phenotypic features from infancy to toddlerhood.
Autism Spectrum Published research Autism Research Youth Mental Health Subsite: CliniKids -
Education and Qualifications