Breakdown:

It’s important to remember that not all screenings with your physician will lead to evaluations, this is only a process that will occur if your child may need extra help from a specialist in a specific field like an occupational therapist, speech pathologist, etc. An evaluation will normally occur after your physician refers you to a specialist. During this time the specialist will work with your child to help confirm/rule out any diagnoses and create a plan of action for the future! There are many different forms of early intervention specialists that are here to support you and your child through any delays they may be experiencing. You also don’t always need a referral to an early intervention specialist who can help you find resources and possibly other specialists. The CDC has created a contact page for you to find early intervention centers near you.

CDC Early Intervention Contacts

Who are your possible specialists?

  • These specialists are prepared to help you and your child on the broad scope of development. They are equipped to educate and help you within any of the 4 developmental domains. These specialists can be key players if your child is experiencing delays in more than one category.

  • Physical therapists can help with your child’s motor development to help refine their gross and fine motor skills to hopefully allow your child to improve skills like walking, crawling, rolling over, etc.

  • Occupational therapists are specialists that are prepared to help your child work on activities of daily living. They cover the scope of many different domains of development like motor skills as well as cognitive and communication.

  • Speech pathologists are great assets if your child is having any problems with their communication development skills. They can help your child with expression or even sign language if necessary.

  • Vision specialists can help with any sort of visual impairments, like if your child may need glasses. They can also help you find other resources to give your child access to other specialists that can help with any delays that may be impacted by their visual status.

  • Audiologists or even other hearing specialists can make sure that you are educated on hearing loss or deafness and can help you and your child through the process whether that be getting hearing impairment devices or other strategies.