New Research Evidence for Developmental Approaches in the Treatment of ASD – Showcasing the P.L.A.Y.® Project

Richard Solomon, MD, is a practicing Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrician, the Medical Director at The Ann Arbor Center for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, and founder of The PLAY Project. He is board certified in Pediatrics and Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics and has been diagnosing and treating children with autism spectrum disorders for over 25 years. With a reputation as the “fun” doctor, Rick is known for his ability to make children smile and laugh, calming their fears and building trust. His overall approach is influenced by his work alongside autism and child development visionaries T. Berry Brazelton MD, Stanley Greenspan MD, and Mr. Fred Rogers. In 2001, Dr. Rick developed the PLAY Project in response to the need for evidenced-based autism intervention options and from 2009-2012 was the principle investigator of one of the largest autism intervention research studies in the U.S., with the results published in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics. The PLAY Project’s mission is to train a national network of pediatric professionals to deliver an evidence-based, low-cost, intensive, developmental intervention to families of young children with autism spectrum disorders. To that end, Dr. Solomon has trained 500+ pediatric professionals from 30 U.S. states and 7 countries to become certified PLAY Project Consultants. This year, Dr. Solomon published his book Autism: The Potential Within, The PLAY Project Approach for Children with Autism.