During these times of ever expanding wait lists for our children to be seen by Pediatricians, mental health services and therapist, we decided to offer screening development opportunities with Occupational Therapy OT and Speech Language Therapy SLT.
Together with Simply Speaking SLT we run an event in 2022 where SLT and OT would screen the children that were registered to the event. We advertised the event publicly and offered it as an hour screening, with an SLT and OT present to support your child and family goals. Parents could register for the event and choose the options to what interested them to sign up, e.g communication, speech or development skills.
The SLT and OT engage with the child in play for the 45 minute screening, during this time OT would clinically assess the child’s gross motor skills, fine motor skills, social skills, sensory processing and be available to answer any questions. The SLT would assess speech sounds, clarity, communication and age and stage for the child, they also supported together with OT foundational play skills relevant to communication. In the last 15 minutes therapists let the families know of their clinical observations and where to next, such as community services or whether further therapy may be required. We answer any questions the families or carers have and give them a handout with further information and links to go to for services in the area and public system.
In this event there is no notes written to follow, however a report can be requested if needing further support for Paediatrician or developmental assessment.
We are definitely looking to run this again in the future, and OT also run this on their own some holidays when we have more availability. So keep an eye out for this if your wishing for any aspect of your child's development to receive some support.
If you are awaiting to visit a Paediatrician or have been told your child may need SLT or Occupational therapy input this screening development event may be just the thing to answer your questions, and to support your goals.
Melissa Walker-Tate
Occupational Therapist
Connecting Together Ltd.
www.connecting-together.co.nz
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