Phone Conversation:
We are happy to discuss any questions or concerns you may have regarding your child’s speech, language and/or literacy skills on the telephone. One of our speech pathologists will be able to advise whether the difficulties your child is experiencing are age appropriate or whether further assessment is warranted. Telephone consultations are carried out in a confidential manner and if an assessment or therapy is required, we will schedule an appointment at your earliest convenience.
Initial Appointment:
Assessment: The assessment will be tailored to your child’s individual needs taking into account your child’s age, area of concern, attention to task and if a diagnosis has been made previously. Assessments generally take between 1 and 3 sessions to complete depending on the child’s needs. The assessment procedure includes:
- a discussion with parents or caregivers to find out additional information such early developmental history, speech and language history, medical history, school and learning information etc.
- a formal and/or informal assessment of your child’s speech, language and/or literacy skills. Formal assessment involves the use of a standardised assessment battery which will allow results to be compared to other Australian children of the same age. Informal assessment can include assessment through play-based activities, reading/writing tasks, conversation and observation.
- Feedback will be shared at the end of the session, however, the speech pathologist may need additional time to score and analyse assessment results in order to provide more detailed information.
- The speech pathologist may request to liaise with other professionals involved in your child’s care, such as the class teacher or a paediatrician, in order to find out more information. This will provide you with a clear indication of your child’s strengths and areas that require additional support.
If a Speech Pathology assessment has been completed within last 12 months, we are more than happy to use the results from the most recent report combined with a detailed discussion with parents to determine the appropriate therapy goals.
A doctor’s referral is not necessary. If you are unsure as to whether your child needs an assessment, please do not hesitate to contact us to determine whether your concerns are age appropriate or further assessment is warranted.
Report:
Following the completion of the assessment, a detailed report will be provided within 2 weeks of the last assessment session. The report will provide a clear outline of the speech and language skills assessed, how your child is performing across each area and a list of recommendations. Additional copies of the report can be provided to appropriate services including preschools/schools, doctors, occupational therapists etc.
Therapy:
- If therapy is required, a suitable time will be arranged. In most cases weekly or fortnightly therapy sessions are recommended. Therapy sessions can range from 30 minutes to one hour, depending on your child’s needs and therapy goals. This will be discussed with your therapist at the time of the assessment/report.
- Therapy sessions include time at the beginning and end of the session to review and discuss homework activities.
- Therapy blocks and intensive programs are often provided during school holidays. Please discuss with your therapist for further details.
- We aim to make all therapy sessions enjoyable and motivating, taking into account your child’s personality, interests and attention levels. It is essential that parents are involved in the therapy sessions to ensure that home programs can be effectively implemented at home.