What should I expect 1st OT appt?

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Hi again!

Your probs getting sick of me by now

Just wondering if someone can tell me what happens and what to expect on DS first Occ therapy Appt?

Thanks

Oh, never worry about asking lots of questions. It means the rest of us get a chance to learn from each other and contribute if we can.

We've not had a meeting with OT yet, but I can tell you how the first Speech and Language Therapy appointment went. There were 2 SLTs involved and one of them sat with me and went through loads of questions about my son, going right back to when he was a baby and coming up to date. Meanwhile, the other SLT played with, talked with, or rather was alternately talked at and ignored by, my son.

So, I'd think that it will probably be a combination of interaction, observation and getting background information from you.

But, I am guessing and will be interested to hear what others have to say.

Good luck with it, and I hope it goes well.

It depends ...

If this is an evaluation, rather than a screening (which means it would be more thorough), the OT will ask you questions about your son, but most of the time should be spent on various activities with your son. These will vary from fine motor to sensory integration issues. Most kids experience the evaluation as fun, and most pediatric OT's are good at assessing when kids need to switch from one activity to another. They use lots of positive reinforcement and they tend to be very cheerful and upbeat, with lots of "Good job" for whatever the child does, to keep the child engaged and working their best. If you're not sure what to tell your son, just tell him that you'll be seeing someone, and see how much he asks. If he asks, say she'll be playing some special games with him, and you don't know exactly what games they are, you're both going to have to wait and see! If he doesn't ask, let it wait until the OT can do the explanation.

You probably won't get much feedback in terms of results at the appointment - usually they need to take the data and sort through it to figure out what the results are. It's appropriate to ask how long to expect it to take before you receive the results/report.

Hi, thanks for your replies.

I'm not sure what the difference is between "Screened" and "Evaluated" ... So I'm a little confused to what you mean Jat.

I basically want an assessement of some sort from the OT, to give me an indication I guess as to weather or not DS may or may not be on the spectrum? And importantly help him deal with some of his issues.

However at the time of appt, I just told her that he has alot of sensitivities esp with sound. She told me the $$ of the appt, and said that it included a report.

Maybe I need to ring and confirm a few things with her... What should I be asking her to do? Screen or Evaluate?

Thanks again

A screening is generally a much briefer and more superficial look at a person than an evaluation is. If you're paying for a report, it will be an evaluation, not just a screening. Often at places like early intervention centers, they have intake workers who do initial screenings, and only if the child appears impaired enough to that person does the child then get moved along to the next stage, where a full evaluation is done.

An OT with experience in sensory integration should be able to assess in various sensory areas (auditory, proprioceptive, vestibular ...), and may even be able to suggest that you have your child assessed further for possible ASD, but in my experience, OT's are not supposed to make that diagnosis and tend to be very careful about "suggesting" that a child has ASD - they are much more likely to recommend further evaluation. If, however, your child's primary ASD issues are sensory-related, getting this evaluation is a great start, and getting treatment in this area will help immensely.

Ohhh OK... great, I have a better picture now thanks for all your helpful info!