When I took Bad for his 2 year well-baby check in December, our doctor expressed some mild concern over his speech development and told me that she was going to refer him for a speech assessment. He definitely doesn't talk as much as his sister did at the same age, and he leaves the first syllable off a lot of his words, but I'd never really worried.
Today I got a call telling me that his referral had been received, and an information package had been mailed to me that I was to fill out and send back. "And then," said the chipper voice on the other end of the phone, "as soon as there's an available space, we'll have someone call you with an appointment. The waiting time right now is between 10 and 14 months."
10 and 14 MONTHS? I think Bad will catch up on his own, and I know my doctor likes to take a pro-active, early intervention approach with speech issues, precisely because the wait times are long; but that's just ridiculous. No child should have to wait that long for an assessment, let alone help. Methinks the healthcare system needs yet more tinkering. Preferably by someone not in government.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
That is ridiculous.
Down here, kids can often be seen by the specialist at their local elementary school, even if they are not yet enrolled. Grace had speech sessions at our school for a year before she started kindergarten.
Also, speech issues (either major or minor) can be related to hearing issues. Even though Grace tested perfectly at our doctor's office, we took her to a hearing specialist, whereupon we discovered that our four year old was partially deaf and had been so since birth.
Even though I doubt that's what's going on with your boy, I suggest that you follow through on your doctor's recommendations, just in case.
We had to do the whole speech testing for Bart too. It didn't take that long for an assessment because they like to start the intervention by 28 months of age for full effect.
He had a hearing test (which was fine) and they wanted me to take a course on how to help him at home, but I couldn't at the time because I was very pregnant with Maggie and they wanted me to guarantee I would be there all 9 weeks. Anyway, I got some of the course handouts and did them at home (mostly just reading to him and emphasising the first sound of each word). By the time he was three, his speech was on par with any other 3-year-old I knew.
Wow! That's horrible. Most of the kids that I know that had "speech delays" will not shut up now! :)
I hope you can get an assessment before 10 -14 months!
Insane! Our system does indeed have some glaring issues!
I think this outrageous! Our system often means long waits for speech and language assessments but usually the early intervention programs for young kids aim to see kids sooner.
There is no definite age by which "early intervention" should be implemented but of course waiting too long defeats the purpose. At Bad's age, what you describe sounds reasonably normal. I reckon you're probably right about him catching up on his own. They all do it at there own pace and it doesn't necessarily mean there's a problem.As long as you're not worried then I agree you should cancel it.
On the other hand, I guess if you keep the appointment you could decide when it comes up?
Wow, what a helpful comment.
wow. that's insane. how can it be early intervention if they're already in school before they get to see someone?!?! CRAZY!
CRAZY. The problem is, we are recognizing that the earlier we intervene the better, but the funding isn't there to support the referrals. It's a big cycle.
SEE? Cycles and circles...
Oh that's just rich. We did some wrangling with our insurance company to get a private speech therapist approved for the very same reason -- the person "assigned" to Zack only came for one hour every three MONTHS. How the hell was THAT going to help?
Post a Comment