Update on Sarah, new assessment

[egoldber]

We had Sarah assessed a second time today. This time it was through a federal early intervention program for infants and toddlers age 0-3. And the results were pretty much the same. They concurred with the private assessor's diagnosis of low muscle tone. (They actually pointed out a few other signs she has that are symptomatic of this.) They said that she wasn't terribly delayed, and if left to herself would "probably" grow out of it eventually, but that she would probably benefit from some early intervention. Her most "serious" delay at this point is speech, and she tested at a 13 month level for speech. Like the other therapist, they were more concerned about the types of sounds she makes (not quantity of words) and her lip movements.

So we are set up to have an infant educator (an occuptation I had never heard of until today) come to our home once a week for a month. At that point we'll probably drop down to every other week for a few months. She will be reassessed in 6 months to see if she still needs intervention (but the program is very flexible and she could be re-assessed sooner if need be). The visits won't start for a couple weeks as our paperwork needs to wind its way through the bureaucracy.

I guess I feel better after today's assessment. She was assessed by THREE people this time (an infant educator, an occupational therapist and a speech pathologist). And I must say everyone was just incredibly nice. They thought Sarah was adorable and they LOVED her navy kitty cat Robeez. :)

[COElizabeth]

I never heard of an infant educator, either! I wonder what exactly the training is (not questioning the qualifications, I am just curious!). Will he or she work on the speech sounds specifically? A little girl in a playgroup I attend occasionally was recently diagnosed with a mild case of hypotonia, too. She is not to the point of talking yet (is only about 11 months), but one "clue" was that she locks her knees when standing up. I hope that Sarah's sessions go well. It's nice that they will be in your home, and she will probably love the extra attention and new activities. Keep us posted on her progress!

Elizabeth
Mom to James
9-20-02

[jubilee]

Great that you got another assessment! I was curious if they also suggested "heavy" toys, and if they gave you recommendations?

[megsmom]

Glad to see that you got the other assessment. Is is through the county's PIE program? I kept meaning to get you that number and just got it Monday from the peds PT at work. Sorry. I'm glad to see at least everyone is consistent! :) I'm sure that with all of your work Sarah will really learn to do a lot of new things.

Jen
mom to Meghan 7/13/01

[parkersmama]

I'm glad that you were able to get a 2nd (and 3rd & 4th!) opinion. It sounds like you are in really good hands. That must be such a relief to you! I'm sure that Sarah will really love the therapy. From what I've seen from a friend whose child has had several types of therapy, it's mostly playing from Sarah's viewpoint...only you & the therapist will be able to tell that it's play with a specific purpose! Keep us posted on how it goes!

[egoldber]

This is the program: http://www.earlyintervention-va.com/ I'm not sure what PIE is. But this seems to be the only game in town for infants and toddlers under two. The federal program is called IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act).

The state of Virginia has its own program (administered in Fairfax County through the Fairfax County Schools). That program is for kids ages 2 and up. When Sarah turns two, if she still needs intervention, we can go into that program. That program is totally free (since it is through the school system). The federal program has a sliding fee scale based on ability to pay.

[kathsmom]

Beth,

I am glad that you were able to get Sarah more thoroughly assessed. I know it must be a relief to have some concrete answers with specific goals to work towards.

In S.C., when I worked early intervention, the program was for children 0-3. Our schools wouldn't take them until they were 3.

I am glad that the therapists were so nice and like Denise said, therapy is structured play time to work on the goals. My kids usually had a great time!

Good luck with everything! Please feel free to e-mail me or my friend!

Toni - mom to Katherine (5/19/96) and Andrew (9/23/02)

[KathyO]

VERY pleased to hear that you've been able to bring all this expertise to bear on the issues, and I think you deserve kudos too, for taking just the right approach to it all -- focused, but not freaked out!! It's far rarer than you probably think!!

Cheers,

KathyO

[atlbaby]

I'm glad to hear this second assessment went well too, and that *you* feel good about it! And that's great that you got such a comprehensive perspective since three people came, all from different professions! In my experience working as a nanny to a toddler who had a speech path, OT, and PT each come to work with him during the week, the children really love the attention and "games" they play, and look forward to the visits. I'm sure Sarah will really enjoy the time with her infant educator too. Please keep us posted on her progress!

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01
#2:) EDD 10/24/03

[belindapooh]

Beth - I'm glad things are progessing well with Sarah. I just wanted to let you know that the Early Intervention Program is great. Nyah was diagnosed with tortiollis (wry neck) at 4mths and we got into the program though the county. Nyah had her initial assessment and got follow-on treatment with a county PT/OT. It was great to have this on top of saying our doctor and PT - which was at Walter Reed. You know how it is driving around DC. It was great to have someone come to our home and work with Nyah. The option was also available for them to go to her daycare. We didn't need treatment for very long since it was caught early and we had done lots of stretching at home on our own. But I know of a lady who had the county PT through Early Intervention and her regular PT have weekly/bi-weekly conferences (telephone) and discussed her daughter's progress and treatment and was happy that they were working together and not have 2 separate treatments. I found this lady on the yahoo group - it was great to talk with other parents dealing with the same thing.

Regards,
Belinda
Nyah's mom
Born 2/6/02

[Rachels]

Smart people. Sarah IS adorable, of course.

I'm glad you had another assessment! I agree that Sarah will probably love the home visits. Every child I've seen in this capacity has just had a ball. It all feels like playing with new toys to them.

Good luck! Keep us posted.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02

[nigele]

I'm so glad you are feeling better about all of this. Keep up the good work with Sarah!!

[mamahill]

Thanks for sharing - here's to continued progress in the coming weeks and months! And they BETTER have thought she was adorable, especially with the Robeez!

[Andrea S]

I am glad your assessment went well and you feel good about it I am sure Sarah will do great with her educator and impress her with her cute shoes. I have never heard of that position what kind of qualifications do they have? I was wondering if they are like an OT, speech therapist all in one or if it is something different.
Sounds like a rewarding job when you get to see the little ones progress.


Andrea
mom to Andrew 8/14/02

[egoldber]

The infant educator had a Masters in Education with an additional certificate. The way it was explained to me, an infant educator is a generalist who would be able to provide suggestions for various aspects of Sarah's development, as opposed to a speech therapist, who would mainly focus on the speech issues. Since they feel her speech issues are a product of the low muscle tone, and the low tone is also influencing her gross motor and fine motor development, they felt a generalist was more appropriate.

Thanks all for your kind words!

[Andrea S]

It sounds like she is getting the best. That is an interesting position I wonder if they have them everywhere. Thanks for the info I was just curious.

Andrea
mom to Andrew 8/14/02

[jojo2324]

Sorry I am so late to this, but I just wanted to cheer you on a bit! It sounds like Sarah is in strong, confident hands! Best of luck to you both...Keep us posted! :D

[Annette_C]

Beth,
I'm glad Sarah's second assessment was much better than her first. It sounds like she's in good hands and that she'll be acing through this mild delay with no problems!
Good luck and please continue to keep us posted.

Annette
SAHM to Sabrina 6/24/02