Can I request more speech therapy??? | Autism PDD

I was just wondering how it works with the amount of therapy a child can get.

I am wanting to ask J's parents if it may be possible to get extra time with the speech therapist at my house. They will be expecting me to "follow through" with everything they are teaching him in speech, but how am I supposed to know how to do it? I have never had to worry about this kind of situation before, but I, myself, need to be taught before I can do much for J. It makes it hard only being the care provider.

Please let me know the most kind and un-bossy way I can request therapy in my home.

Thanks everyone!!!!!!!!!

Melomo what an awesone DCP you are - I am sure you can ask for it - I know if our DCP asked for it - I would be sooooo thrilled

Ohhhh that makes more sense now. Unfortunately that evaluator had absolutely no business telling them that. They can say they see signs or they don't but they should add that is something only a DOCTOR can diagnose and if the parent is concerned they should make an appt with a dev pedi or neuro. They are not to diagnose. The school psych in DC told me the same thing, nothing was wrong except speech, they were not autistic cause they smiled at her. I believed her. Then I find out from the teacher months later that she couldn't have told me they were autistic even if she thought they were and that was more of a justification to offer nothing but speech. I also found out that unless a child was severly affected they would not acknowledge autism. Sounds like the evaluator has the county budget in mind more than the welfare of the child. Unfortunately the mother is probably holding onto that evaluators words, thinking if a "professional" says nothing is wrong it must be true.

Hello???????????

Any one there???????????????

I just didn't know if it's even possible to get more therapy time, since they're only giving him 1 hour a week.

Should I ask or not? Would you get upset with your sitter for asking that kind of question???

I don't want to come off the wrong way to the mom.

OH HECK NO! Except ... it doesm kae work to suggest the parents petition for more!

On the other hand they might not know they CAN ...

I'd say, ASK THEM!

Where is the speech therapy happening? Is the therapist going to the child? Because that is normally how it works with early intervention. The therapist goes to the normal daily place of the child, when the boys were in EI they would go to the daycare where a child was and give them services there. I was a stay at home mom so they came to my house. I am kind of surprised the therapy isn't happening at your day care. You can definitely ask the parent, but even if you can't get more therapy (that is usually determined by the therapist and how much the therapist thinks the child needs, it might also have to do with how much money the county has, that would so not surprise me) maybe you can request that a few sessions be done in the daycare so you can observe. This would also serve a dual purpose, allowing the speech therapist to observe the child in the daycare atmosphere and maybe ask about the behaviors because it is affecting you and the other children. The parent might be more open to this then to requesting more therapy since they basically think there really isn't a problem (rose color glasses I am guessing.)I wanted to add too that because the boys had obvious cognitive delays that were noted in their first evaluation (that evaluation was done by EI but not by a speech path, it was done by a PhD in child development) they also got something called special instruction that worked more on behaviors and pointing and eye contact. That might be something he could use too. If he was evaluated by a speech path she is only going to be looking at speech problems. I'm wondering now just who evaluated him.

He was evaluated ONE TIME (ONE HOUR) by First Steps. We live in Kentucky.

He is getting speech at his home.

Back in June, the mother and I met about all of this. Then, she was leaning toward autism. She mentioned it first-- I only agreed with her after she said it because I wasn't going to mention it, just the things that concerned me and let her tell the doctor about it-- but she DID say autism. So that's why I'm so frustrated now that the evaluator said "nothing is wrong except speech".

This evaluator SUCKS if you ask me. I am definately not educated, and I plainly see it every day.

Linda11567:

I agree with you. I was so excited to hear that they had set up the meeting with First Steps b/c I thought something is FINALLY happening--- now I think the mother was more aware before the eval. That was all she needed to convince her. It really sucks to be in my position where he isn't my child and I have to be careful not to say the wrong thing. I just don't know what to do about it. I want to ask them to set up another eval. to take place at my home daycare, but that may upset them. So who knows! I also feel like it is my JOB to take care of problems when I know they exist.

Just for example: If a child was being abused, would someone report it and then give up if nothing was done to get the child out of that terrible situation???

NO-- they would hopefully not give up until it was taken care of, for the sake of the poor innocent child.

That, I guess, is my problem. I feel responsible for his well being.