KC Counts speaks with Alex Buchholz, VP of Clinical Operations for Frontera, about how their AI assisted services can help families in underserved communities. Here is a transcript of their conversation.
KC Counts:
Let me start by asking you to talk about treatment for autism and our best practices.
Alex Buchholz:
Yeah, it's a great question. You know, I think ultimately, we really believe in meeting the family and the child where they're at, and that really starts with the evaluation and understanding of what's going on with this child. And if they are diagnosed for autism, moving them as efficiently as possible into therapy. And I think, you know, Frontera really believes in early intervention and ensuring that children are receiving intervention and therapy in that early intervention window, so before age three, so that they can be as successful as possible later on in life.
KC Counts:
Tell me about Frontera's expansion into New Mexico and what the service provider landscape looks like in the state.
Alex Buchholz:
Sure. So, Frontera's been serving in New Mexico since 2024 and this is a very challenging state for families that have children with autism, sparsely populated in some areas, lots of care deserts, limited access to autism therapy and diagnostics, then the rural areas that we serve are disproportionately underserved when it comes to developmental and behavioral health. And as I mentioned, early intervention is critical. So, getting children diagnosed and into therapy quickly can really transform their long-term trajectories. And so, Frontera's mission is around increasing access to services and to diagnostics. We do that through a really incredible care team that's really powered by Frontera technology. We are offering autism evaluations, neurodevelopmental testing, and ABA therapy services. If families are interested, they can visit us at Fronteracare.com and we can start the conversation with them there.
KC Counts:
Let's talk about AI and how it is being used in the field.
Alex Buchholz:
For sure. I think that the biggest thing with AI is that it enhances the clinical workflow. It's a tool that clinicians can leverage. It doesn't replace the clinician, but it does allow the clinician to synthesize more data faster, which ultimately results in the clinician being able to evaluate or treat more children and providing access to services and diagnostics for more families.
KC Counts:
How was the technology tested in the field? Are you aware of what kind of rigor was applied to its use and how we know that it's working effectively?
Alex Buchholz:
Absolutely. So, you know, before our technology was even delivered to our own internal test clinics for use, it went through a rigorous quality assurance process with our engineering product research and development teams. A lot of that team is clinical. And then, we have this great partnership with the providers that we partner with in New Mexico, and they're constantly using the technology in their day-to-day practice and then providing feedback so that we can continue to refine and enhance the tools.
KC Counts:
How is an organization like Frontera affected by those federal cuts that we anticipate coming in 2027? And what is your take on how the state is responding?
Alex Buchholz:
Yeah, that's a good question. We don't know exactly what the impact will be in New Mexico, but our kind of existing service model allows us to operate sustainably. And, you know, we're confident that we'll be able to continue to provide services to families regardless of what the kind of state or federal dynamics are. You know, ultimately, We may kind of strengthen our resources around care coordination, just ensuring that families know what their options are, how to access their benefits, and ultimately how to seek care. And we speak about a lot of those resources on our website, Fronteracare.com. So if parents have questions, that's a great place to start, and we can guide them through that insurance process that can be pretty tricky.
KC Counts:
A news release indicates Frontera is a pioneer in advancing health equity. Tell me in what way has Frontera pioneered health equity?
Alex Buchholz:
Yeah, another great question. You know, I think when we're looking at the state of New Mexico, we know that at least one in 36 children will be diagnosed with autism. And when you do the math today, what that looks like is several thousand children are on a wait list for evaluations in New Mexico alone. And the current wait time for those children and families is 2 to four years. We don't think that that's ethical. We're missing the early intervention window. And so, Frontera's mission is really around increasing access to those services, and we start with diagnostics. So, we have no wait list currently for diagnostics and we get reports back to families within two weeks. This enables them to start the therapy process early with their children, intervene early, and set their children up for the best outcomes later on in life.
KC Counts:
So, tell me about your expansion into New Mexico and what locations will be opening up and where people can find them.
Alex Buchholz:
Definitely. So, we serve the biggest population of families and patients in southern New Mexico, so Las Cruces, Santa Teresa. We serve families in the center, home, school, daycare environments, wanting to meet the families and our clients where they're at and where they most need support. If families want to know specific regions that they serve, we list those all on our website, Fronteracare.com.
KC Counts:
Thank you so much for your time. We appreciate the information.
Alex Buchholz:
Thanks so much. Take care.
