References

American Psychiatric Association. What Is Autism Spectrum Disorder?. 2021. https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/autism/what-is-autism-spectrum-disorder (accessed 12 January 2023)

Anorson N, Male I, Farr W, Memon A. Prevalence of autism in Europe, North America and Oceania, 2000-2020: A systematic review. Eur. J. 31:(3) https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckab164.786

Autism Europe. Prevalence rate of Autism. 2023. https://www.autismeurope.org/about-autism/prevalence-rate-of-autism/ (accessed 12 January 2023)

‘I may have been your nurse. Unknown to you … I also have autism’. 2020. https://www.advisory.com/en/daily-briefing/2020/07/06/autism-nursing (accessed 12 January 2023)

Bury SM, Hedley D, Uljarević M, Gal E. The autism advantage at work: A critical and systematic review of current evidence.: Medline; 2020 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103750

Centers for Disease Control and prevention. Living with autism spectrum disorder: Anita's story. 2019. https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/features/living-with-autism-spectrum-disorder-anita.html (accessed 12 January 2023)

Crespi BJ. Autism as a disorder of high intelligence. Front Neurosci. 2016; 10 https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2016.00300

Fletcher-Watson S, Bird G. Autism and empathy: What are the real links?. Autism. 2020; 24:(1)3-6 https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361319883506

Harmsen IE. Empathy in Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2019; 49:(10)3939-3955 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04087-w

Hosseini SA, Molla M. Asperger Syndrome.Tampa FL: StatPearls Publishing; 2022

Lai MC, Baron-Cohen S. Identifying the lost generation of adults with autism spectrum conditions. Lancet Psychiatry. 2015; 2:(11)1013-1027 https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(15)00277-1

Lai MC, Lombardo MV, Auyeung B, Chakrabarti B, Baron-Cohen S. Sex/gender differences and autism: setting the scene for future research. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2015; 54:(1)11-24 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2014.10.003

Lorenz T, Heinitz K. Aspergers - different, not less: occupational strengths and job interests of individuals with Asperger's Syndrome. PLoS One. 2014; 9:(6) https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0100358

Price S, Lusznat R, Mann R, Locke R. Doctors with Asperger's: the impact of a diagnosis. Clin Teach. 2019; 16:(1)19-22 https://doi.org/10.1111/tct.12743

Roux AM, Shattuck PT, Cooper BP, Anderson KA, Wagner M, Narendorf SC. Postsecondary employment experiences among young adults with an autism spectrum disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2013; 52:(9)931-939 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2013.05.019

Sun X, Allison C, Wei L, Matthews FE, Auyeung B, Wu YY, Griffiths S, Zhang J, Baron-Cohen S, Brayne C. Autism prevalence in China is comparable to Western prevalence. Mol Autism. 2019; 10 https://doi.org/10.1186/s13229-018-0246-0

Sweetmore V. Mental health nursing and autism: I am a mental health nurse so why did it take me so long to realize I'm autistic?. J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 2022; 29:(6)770-773 https://doi.org/10.1111/jpm.12762

Wallis L. ‘They said I was rude’. Nurs Stand. 2012; 26:(39)24-5 https://doi.org/10.7748/ns.26.39.24.s30

Weiss EM, Rominger C, Hofer E, Fink A, Papousek I. Less differentiated facial responses to naturalistic films of another person's emotional expressions in adolescents and adults with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2019; 89:341-346 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.10.007

Wolff S. The history of autism.: Medline; 2004 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-004-0363-5

World Health Organization. Autism Spectrum Disorders. 2022. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/autism-spectrum-disorders (accessed 12 January 2023)

Zeidan J, Fombonne E, Scorah J, Ibrahim A, Durkin MS, Saxena S, Yusuf A, Shih A, Elsabbagh M. Global prevalence of autism: a systematic review update. Autism Res. 2022; 15:(5)778-790 https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2696

Workforce Issues

Autistic nurses: do they exist?

23 February 2023

Professional

02 February 2023

Volume 32 · Issue 4

ISSN (print): 0966-0461

ISSN (online): 2052-2819

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder is an increasing diagnosis on a global scale. Despite limitations related to the diagnosis, many people with autism are active in the workforce, often within the health care sector. It is reasonable to assume that some of those are nurses. There are very few examples of nurses with autism in the literature, mostly in non-scientific contexts, and that these mention both autism-related strengths and limitations at work. A conclusion is that research about nurses with autism is almost non-existent, and it is high time to conduct explorative research in this area. If employers are given the knowledge and the ability to support the needs of nurses with autism, it is likely to benefit the health of the individual nurse, the psychosocial working climate and patient safety.

I once had a meeting with a psychiatrist regarding my research about common mental disorders among women, a large number of whom are nurses. I asked: Since there is an association between common mental disorders and neurodevelopmental disorders, could the latter partly explain the high prevalence of common mental disorders among women employed within the health care sector, such as nurses? The psychiatrist answered: ‘Well, ADHD perhaps… but you don't find autism among nurses.’ I asked why, and the psychiatrist answered: ‘Because that job requires empathy and social skills, and autistic people do not have that, which means that they are uninterested in that kind of work.’

I left the psychiatrist's room and felt that something wasn't right, since I am a nurse with autism myself. Am I really the only one in the world? I decided to investigate the phenomenon further. This article presents background information regarding autism, offers arguments as to why nurses with autism is a relevant area to consider, details what I found out about nurses with autism, and my conclusions arising.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting British Journal of Nursing and reading some of our peer-reviewed resources for nurses. To read more, please register today. You’ll enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included

Limited access to clinical or professional articles
Unlimited access to the latest news, blogs and video content

Or continue by

Signing in with your registered email address

Asperger's

Autism

Empathy

Gender

Intelligence

Nurses

Nursing

Work