The Yellow Ladybugs CARE Framework: A Guide for Healthcare Professionals Caring for Autistic Women, Girls and Gender-Diverse People

Download our free guide, The Yellow Ladybugs CARE Framework: A Guide for Healthcare Professionals Caring for Autistic Women, Girls and Gender-Diverse People.

Autistic women, girls and gender-diverse people often experience additional barriers when accessing healthcare. Many have experienced masking, medical dismissal, diagnostic overshadowing, sensory overwhelm, communication barriers and having physical symptoms attributed to anxiety or autism before other possible explanations have been explored. These experiences can make healthcare feel unsafe, frustrating and exhausting.

The Yellow Ladybugs CARE Framework has been developed to support healthcare professionals create more accessible, trauma-informed and neuro-affirming healthcare experiences. Built around four practical principles – Communication, Autonomy, Reduce Barriers and Empathy – the framework provides practical strategies that can be applied across a wide range of healthcare settings.

Inside you'll find:

• The Yellow Ladybugs CARE Framework: Communication, Autonomy, Reduce Barriers and Empathy
• Practical strategies for creating more accessible and autism-affirming healthcare environments
• Guidance on autistic communication, masking, interoception, alexithymia and processing differences
• Strategies to reduce sensory, cognitive and system barriers
• Practical approaches to shared decision-making, informed consent and respecting autonomy
• Reflection questions to support ongoing learning and improvements in practice

Whether you're a GP, specialist, nurse, allied health professional, psychologist, mental health clinician, receptionist, support worker or student, we hope this guide helps you better understand the experiences of autistic women, girls and gender-diverse people and supports you to provide healthcare where people feel safe, heard, respected and genuinely partnered in their care.

This resource has been made possible through funding provided by the Australian Government Department of Social Services under the Peer Support Grant.