The Early Autism Evaluation (EAE) Hub system, a program of Indiana University School of Medicine established in 2012 and generously supported by Riley Children’s Foundation, is a statewide network of community primary care physicians and clinicians (PCP) with specialized training in autism diagnosis for children 14-48 months of age. Our mission is to improve access to early autism evaluations and provide connections to life-changing interventions and community resources that support optimal child development and family wellbeing. The EAE Hub system is now the largest known primary care system of autism diagnosis in the US with more than 20 sites representing numerous health systems.
We partner with primary care teams to accomplish our mission through key drivers of care:
Train diverse community clinicians in autism diagnosis and care management
Provide longitudinal support to care teams through a monthly learning collaborative
Maintain a repository of training materials and resources to support care delivery
Use quality indicator data to drive system refinements and quality assurance
Advocate across statewide systems for policies that support care of autistic children
For more information about the EAE Hub system, contact us at iusmeae@iu.edu.
Clinical Pathway
The EAE Hub standard clinical evaluation pathway involves administration or review of standard developmental and autism screening tools, an autism-focused diagnostic interview and medical history conducted with the child’s caregiver, physical examination, and administration of an observational assessment tool. The EAE Hub clinician synthesizes all assessment data to determine diagnosis, and the family is counseled on the diagnosis and next step recommendations and resources. The clinical report with diagnosis and tailored care plan is disseminated to the child’s family and referring PCP. When autism diagnostic outcome cannot be determined in the EAE Hub evaluation (e.g., due to complex clinical presentation), children are referred to an autism diagnostic specialist.
Initial evaluation begins with a thorough review of prior developmental screenings to assess areas of concern and guide the clinical interview.
A detailed interview is conducted with the caregiver, focusing on the child’s developmental and medical history and incorporating a systematic assessment of DSM-5 criteria for autism.
Clinicians administer a validated observational assessment tool, such as the Screening Tool for Autism in Toddlers and Young Children (STAT), to assess current social communication and behaviors associated with autism.
A targeted physical exam is performed to identify any medical findings that may contribute to or clarify the child’s developmental profile.
Findings from all components of the evaluation are synthesized to formulate a clinical diagnosis. The diagnosis is shared with the family in a collaborative and supportive manner.
A comprehensive clinical report is developed and provided to the family. This includes the diagnostic conclusions and tailored recommendations for next steps in care, including referrals for intervention, therapy, and other support services.
Capacity Building and Education
To facilitate the early diagnosis and improve care of young children at increased likelihood for autism, the EAE Hub system is committed to building capacity of primary care clinicians through education and ongoing support. Our initial training course prepares PCPs for independent competency in autism diagnostic evaluation of young children. The course includes three phases of training, completed flexibly in either live or virtual format, and is hosted on Canvas (an online educational learning platform). Training typically takes approximately 30 hours to complete.
Following training, EAE Hub clinicians and teams are closely supported in launching their evaluation site and participate in our monthly virtual learning collaborative. The learning collaborative is offered twice monthly via Zoom with repeated content to maximize opportunities for busy PCPs and their teams to participate. The goal of the learning collaborative is to support community clinicians in applying quality improvement methods within their primary care practices. This approach enhances developmental screening and referral processes for children at increased likelihood of autism as well as supporting methods for connecting families to appropriate evaluations, therapies, and services. We often offer American Board of Pediatrics Maintenance of Certification (MOC) courses as part of the learning collaborative curriculum.
Over 6,500 EAE evaluations have been completed since 2012. In 2024:
1,325 children were served in the EAE Hubs, our largest annual volume to date.
Nearly 600 PCPs from 70 Indiana counties referred children for evaluation.
Average age of diagnosis was 33 months.
Average wait time from referral to evaluation was 3-4 months.
56% of children received an autism diagnosis; the majority of children evaluated received a diagnosis of developmental delay.
EAE Hub Locations
EAE Hub sites are currently situated within more than 20 primary care practices across the state, ranging from large health systems to private practices. EAE Hub clinicians serve as regional consultants and receive referrals from local primary care clinicians for evaluation of children at increased likelihood for autism. The list of current sites and contact information is found below. Individual sites can be contacted for information about referral processes. New sites are added every year — if your primary care team is interested in becoming a site, please reach out to us at iusmeae@iu.edu.
Cameron Pediatrics
306 Maumee St Ste 303
Angola, IN 46703 260- 667- 5690
Riley Pediatric Care Center - Avon
1111 N Ronald Reagan Pkwy, Suite C1600
Avon, IN 46123 317- 217-3120
Riley Pediatric Care Center - Bedford
1614 25th St.
Bedford, IN 47404 812- 277-0118
IU Health Riley Physicians
4935 W. Arlington Rd.
Bloomington, IN 47404
812-353-3785
Parkview Health 1270 IN-205 Ste 230 Columbia City, IN 46725 260-248-9920
Peyton Manning Children's Northside Crossing Pediatrics
14020 Old State Rd Suite C300
Evansville, IN 47725
812-469-4755
Riley Pediatric Primary Care – Fishers
11530 Allisonville Rd, Ste 190
Fishers, IN 46038
463-251-3937
*IU Health referrals only
Alliance Health 2700 Lafayette St, Ste 110 Fort Wayne, IN 46806 260-266-0780
Parkview Health
8233 Glencarin Blvd
Fort Wayne, IN 46804
260-425-5470
Bowen Health
2100 Goshen Road
Fort Wayne, IN 46808
260-471-3500
Community Healthnet
3503 Martin Luther King Dr.
Gary, IN 46409
219-880-1190
Maple City Health Care Center
808 N 3rd St
Goshen, IN 46528 574-534-0088
Community Physician Network Family
Medicine And Pediatric Care
3000 S. State Rd. 135, Ste. 310
Greenwood, IN, 46143
317-497-2400
* Community Health Network referrals only
Marram Health Center
704 S State Road 2
Hebron, IN 46341 219-996-2641
Riley Pediatric Care Center
1002 Wishard Blvd, Suite 2120
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317-944-4846
Eskenazi Health Center Pecar
6940 Michigan Rd.
Indianapolis IN 46268
317-266-2901
*Eskenazi referrals only
Riley Pediatric Primary Care
1002 Wishard Blvd, Suite 2001
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317-944-2801
*IU Health referrals only
Riley Pediatric Primary Care - Indianapolis
9650 E. Washington St., Suite 245
Indianapolis, IN 46229 317-890-5552
Jasper Primary Care Physicians
1950 St Charles Street, Suite 4
Jasper, IN 47546 812-482-9555
IU Health Arnett
2600 Greenbush
Lafayette, IN 47904
765-448-8000 (ask for Peds triage)
* IU Heath Arnett referrals only
Riley Physicians Pediatrics
820 Samuel Moore Pkway, Suite C
Mooresville, IN 46158
ALL IN Pediatrics
2305 Green Valley Rd.
New Albany, IN 47150
812-949-0405
*ALL IN Pediatrics referrals only
Growing Kids Pediatrics
3321 Ballard Ln.
New Albany, IN 47150
812-944-4575
Deaconess Riley Children’s
Specialty Center
4209 Gateway Blvd., MOB 2
Suite 1100
Newburgh, IN 47630
812-858-3131
MHP Pediatrics
2451 Intelliplex Drive, Suite 240
Shelbyville, IN 46176 317-398-7337
Primary Care Partners of South Bend
300 South St. Louis, Suite 204
South Bend, IN 46617
574-251-1200
Bowen Health
255 N Miami St.
Wabash, IN 46992
574-385-3145
Community Physician Network
Pediatric Care
19800 East St Ste 120
Westfield, IN 46074
463-622-9200 CHN referrals only
Beyond its clinical mission, the EAE Hub system functions as a dynamic health services laboratory situated within Indiana’s diverse communities. Our internationally recognized research has shown that primary care autism diagnosis is feasible, accurate, reduces evaluation wait time, supports entry into intervention and access to community supports, and is valued by caregivers.
Saunders, A.W., Langdon, S., Paxton, A., McNally Keehn, R., Keehn, B. (2025). Brief report: Service referral and enrollment following autism diagnosis in primary care. Res. Autism, 123, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.reia.2025.202575.
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Martin AM, Ciccarelli MR, Swigonski N, McNally Keehn, R. Evaluation of race and ethnicity across a statewide system of early autism evaluation. The Journal of Pediatrics, 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2022.10.023.
McNally Keehn R, Tang Q, Swigonski N, Ciccarelli M. Associations Among Referral Concerns, Screening Results, and Diagnostic Outcomes of Young Children Assessed in a Statewide Early Autism Evaluation Network. Journal of Pediatrics. 2021; 233: 74-81.e8 doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.02.063
McNally Keehn R, Ciccarelli M, Szczepaniak D, Tomlin A, Lock T, Swigonski N. A Statewide Tiered System for Screening and Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Pediatrics. 2020 Aug;146(2):e20193876. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-3876
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