Autism Spectrum Disorders and simulation: a tool in the service of treatment

The realisation of a paraclinical examination, in a hospital setting, for a child or adult suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is often complex. Following a request from health professionals working with autistic patients, the Simu-Health Centre, a centre of training and simulation for health professionals, organized simulation sessions for these patients related to an examination that the patients had to do (MRI monitoring, radiography, etc.). Putting the patients into real situations, in repeated conditions, is designed to help them familiarize themselves with the examination procedure, in the most favourable conditions possible, in order to make it possible for them to cope with the feared examination. The aim of this article is to present the origins of this project as well as the benefits observed since it was set up.