Special Needs

Articles

...The evaluation team (usually a school psychologist, special education teacher, and sometimes a speech therapist, occupational therapist, or other specialist) chooses assessments based on your child's suspected needs. A child referred for reading struggles gets different tests than a child referred for...

...needs, the team might include: A developmental specialist or service coordinator A speech-language pathologist...physical therapist A psychologist or behavioral specialist Not all of these people show up for every evaluation....see a physical therapist and a developmental specialist. If your child isn't talking yet, a speech-language...

...dorsal rhizotomy. The orthotist fitted your child for new braces. Each specialist was confident. None of them acknowledged what the others said. You're...approaches rather than choosing between them. When Botox Makes Sense. When a specialist first mentions Botox, parents often assume it means they're starting over,...

Your child's specialist just mentioned a clinical trial. Or an advocacy organization sent an email about a study recruiting for your child's condition. You've got a packet...

You earn too much for Medicaid. Your employer offers insurance, but it doesn't come close to covering your child's therapy appointments, specialist visits, or durable medical equipment. The deductible resets every January, and by February you're already thousands of dollars in. You're working...

...on, under, next to), and environmental awareness (the door makes a sound when it opens, the floor changes texture near the stairs). A qualified O&M specialist uses play-based activities that look nothing like formal instruction. They're building the mental map your child will use for every navigation task...

You're handed a referral for a speech-language pathologist. Your pediatrician says your child needs one. The school mentions it in passing. A specialist writes it on a form. Nobody explains what happens next, what the SLP will do, or whether this is the right kind of help for your child. Most families...

...time. Stage 1: Referral. Someone refers your child for a special education evaluation. That someone can be you, a teacher, a pediatrician, or another specialist who has regular contact with your child. Either parent or the school can initiate the process. If you're the one making the referral, put it in writing....

You show up for an appointment you waited three months to get. The specialist walks in, looks at your wheelchair, and says, "I'm sorry, we're not equipped to handle your needs." You leave without an exam. Two days later you...

...trained veteran parent whose child has the same or a similar diagnosis. That parent has navigated what you're navigating now. They've been to the same specialist appointments, asked the same questions, hit the same insurance roadblocks. It's free. It's available in all 50 states. And it's backed by more than...

You're coordinating six specialists who don't talk to each other, three therapists working from different...for six different providers. You need one source of truth that every specialist can pull from. Build a master document with: Diagnosis summary (one...

...from one of these sources: A licensed medical professional: physician, nurse practitioner, or psychiatrist A licensed vocational rehabilitation specialist Any federal, state, or local agency...