EI, is this normal?

[GardenStream]

I called about my 30mo son having a speech delay 2 weeks ago. A lady came out to the house earlier this week to do some paperwork and do a mini-evaluation on my DS. He was definitely in the delayed speech area and I was told that I would need to take my son in for a 2 hour assessment. So, the lady called me today and told me that my appointment was in 2 weeks and it was from 1:30 until 3:30.

I told her that wouldn't work because that's nap time and DS does not work around his nap time, he literally fell asleep on the floor of the doctor's office two months ago when we went during nap time.

The lady said they only do 6 assessments a month over 2 days. I told her I would wait until December if that was my only choice. This is my first time dealing with a public-assistance program. Do I have other options? I have no problem taking my DS in and paying for an assessment, is that even possible?

[SpottedFoxx]

It's normal for here. Yes, you have the option of taking your child for a private evaluation if you like however I'd ask if they will accept that or if they still have to do their assessment. You also want to see if your insurance covers it as it can be quite expensive.

We didn't like the EI assessment which stated our son didn't have a speech delay - that if he would learn to sit still, he'd pick up on language . We allowed them to do their "therapy" (special education teacher had a 1/2 hr of arts and crafts with him every Saturday) for 6 months and nothing changed. We did our own speech evaluation privately and learned he has a severe articulation disorder.

[kozer1]

The problem with waiting until December would be that EI ends at 36 months of age...So he wouldn't get much time - BUT they can help you move into the school system for special needs preschool when he turns 3. They help facilitate the process and make it easier for the parents. So, even if you did wait until December, at least you can get help with moving him into a SN preschool. That's if 1. you are interested or 2. your school district has a program. So it is really up to you if you want to pursue EI that late in the game or try to go to the appointment at least (if he falls asleep or they can't get enough data, then just re-schedule. It may be worth it to at least try!) Also, there is usually a waiting list for therapists, so if you began the evaluation in December, there may be a waiting list that is weeks-months. My twins were in EI from 6 months-36 months, and if I remember correctly, it was a 2 month wait for a PT, and when they were 15 months, we added speech therapy and occupational therapy, and the wait for the speech was 6 weeks and 1 month for the OT. Not sure where you live, but I live in NJ.

So, it's up to you - Maybe you can contact the woman you spoke to and ask if there is waiting list for therapists in your area. That can help you make a decision!

(Oh, and I also never heard of the method by which your eval is - The evaluators came to my house and did the whole thing there! The wait for the eval was relatively short - it was only a long time to actually BEGIN therapy since it takes awhile to create the reports, sign off on them/mail them to you, find therapists, etc.)

Edit to add: You can certainly go the route privately. I did this as well for additional services through the Children's Specialized Hospital. Luckily, my insurance paid for everything. We do not go anymore since my kids are in a full time preschool (M-F 9am-3pm) getting their services there.

[anj_rn]

Yes, unfortunately this is very normal. If you have health insurance that will pay for assessment & treatment I would definitely go that route. My DD was assessed at home (but we changed to private therapy since EI did not offer aggressive enough therapy. If EI is another option, I would go in November. The worst that can happen is they have to reschedule for Dec. Otherwise, they might see enough to determine he needs to start therapy. Although, he will be transferring to school based services at 3 yrs.

[KCMichigan]

Yes, it is normal.

We got evaulated at home the first 2 years and then after age 2 we had to go to the EI building.

Assessments were done on FRI twice a month. two am slots and two pm slots. Take it or leave it.


I would ask about any cancellations that may come up and/or if they had any flexibility due to your DS aging out of EI soon. They may even be eval'ing him for the school system (start at age 3). Often if a student is 'close' to the cut off date they will simply place them in the older program rather than two new programs in less than 6 mnths.

You can go private if your insurance will pay. Otherwise it is fairly pricey in most areas and EI may or may not accept that eval anyway and request to do their own.

[GardenStream]

Originally Posted by KCMichigan

I would ask about any cancellations that may come up and/or if they had any flexibility due to your DS aging out of EI soon. They may even be eval'ing him for the school system (start at age 3). Often if a student is 'close' to the cut off date they will simply place them in the older program rather than two new programs in less than 6 mnths.

Ok, the consensus is that everyone gets treated like this.

I have voiced my concerns and requested more information about exactly how they would be helping my son, if it's one-on-one or group therapy, how many times a month, and if this program is really the best choice for my family. I'm waiting for a response from out service coordinator.

[confustication]

We jumped at the appointment we had- they are hard slots to get here with a long waiting list. He was tired, but he still had a baseline from which to work.

Since EI stops at 36 months- though it segues from there- I would get the earliest appointment possible.

[Kristine233]

Yup, they are stretched very thin and have a lot of families to work with, so it can be hard to get an appointment because they spend the rest of the time meeting with families, doing mini-appointments etc. That's why they don't start off with the 2 hour one, there just isn't time. So its really not about them treating you badly, they just genuinely can't shift things around because they are overbooked. I'm sure they'd love to make accomodations if they could, no one wants to try to eval a tired and possibly cranky kiddo if they can avoid it. It can be a good program, its just underfunded IMO.

With that said, since he'll be aging out soon anyways, I'd check on getting it privately done. You can ask your Dr for a referral to a speech pathologist and they can do one for you. Our insurance paid for it as well and it was at the therapy center in our hospital. That diagnosis made it possile for our DD to get speech therapy at school or we could have opted for speech at the clinic if we had wanted.

[GardenStream]

Originally Posted by Kristine233

With that said, since he'll be aging out soon anyways, I'd check on getting it privately done. You can ask your Dr for a referral to a speech pathologist and they can do one for you. Our insurance paid for it as well and it was at the therapy center in our hospital. That diagnosis made it possile for our DD to get speech therapy at school or we could have opted for speech at the clinic if we had wanted.

The service coordinator got back to me and said that it could definitely be better for my son if we got therapy on our own.

[Kristine233]

Originally Posted by atobols

The service coordinator got back to me and said that it could definitely be better for my son if we got therapy on our own.

Yeah, unless you start really early sometimes its just easier to do it privately. Don't get me wrong, we started with EI with my son and loved it. But when he aged out it was a huge PITA to get things switched over and we had to start over. Wish we would have started privately to begin with. We did start privately with my DD and it has been easier.

[babygirlie]

My dd fell asleep during her eval :P It was at their building and it was like 2 hours in the afternoon. They basically went off what they observed the first little bit she WAS awake. Then they left for quite awhile to type up their stuff and add up their scores. By the time they came back she had woken up and played a tiny bit for them. The things they couldn't do when she was asleep they just asked me if she could do them.

Her first appointment at home she slept through also :x but it was all paperwork and the lady didn't care and said so before she arrived.

At her second appointment at home we both fell asleep just before she got here. Oops! I'm beginning to think I might suck at the nap time thing lol. She was pretty tired as I threw a new diaper on her and rushed out there.

Imagine the surprise.. lesson one... structure. I discovered something about myself. I do not believe in structure. So I already don't like or understand the reasonings of the lessons.

We have two more teachers with two more evals coming. the testing just never ends ugh.