Parental perspectives on autism services in Saudi Arabia: Decade comparison (2011–2021)

In 2004, Saudi Arabia began providing services to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families. There are no studies—based on the researchers’ knowledge—that have aimed to measure the improvement of services provided since 2004. Therefore, this study sought to determine the extent to which services for individuals with ASD have improved from the perspective of parents. The level of improvement was determined by comparing the two time periods (2011 and 2021). This is the first study in the country to assess parental perspectives on this topic at two time points. A questionnaire was administered to 118 parents/caregivers of children with ASD. The questions were designed to determine parents’ perceptions of the quality of support received from public services, level of community awareness concerning ASD, and factors influencing the support required to care for their children. The results established that some of the problems faced in 2011 were still present in 2021, and highlighted improvements in 2021. •This is the first comparative and national study in Saudi Arabia to measure the level of improvement of autism services.•This study compared two different times when parents of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) received support.•This study highlighted improvements in 2021 comparing to 2011, however, some challenges still exist in 2021.