what info should i bring to ped visit?

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone. My name is and I am mom to a 21 month old DS who

does not talk yet. He babbles constantly and calls everything " dudn. "

Next week we have a visit with his pediatrician for a special 21 month

check up regarding his speech (or lack there of). What should I bring

to this doctor's visit that would be helpful in her evaluation? Should

I bring a list of words and phrases he knows, but can't say (it would

be huge!), a video of him babbling, etc.??

He was referred to an audiologist for an evalauation when he was 19

months. Poor thing was so distressed and cried so hard that he wasn't

really able to complete the test. He thought he was going to get a

shot, I think. The audiologist said he was marginal/normal and that he

should be reasessed in 6 months.

I guess what I'm asking is, what can I do to help the professionals?

thanks!

-leslie

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

All of what you said is great, bring it, make it, the more info the better, I

would write a brief letter with headings for quick viewing which covers your

child's milestones, time when reached or not reached, health, sleep patterns,

eating patterns, play, behavioral problems if any etc. and what your main

concerns are, list of words, examples when he does seem to say more if any, and

try to send this in advance if at all possible requesting that the

evaluation/visit time be spent with the child NOT interviewing the parents for

info that could very well be read prior to the visit so the doctor can better

target that and make better use of the precious $500 something an hour

specialist visit.

I hate it when you pay so much and they spend most of the time talking to the

parent getting info that could have been obtained prior to the visit.  Not all

doctors accept info in advance, but I think if you voice your concern ahead of

time they may be willing to give it a shot.  It makes perfect sense that they

have all that info before the visit to better evaluate the child based on this

prior info provided. Young children can be cranky, uncooperative and very

difficult with strangers, and then they would see a very biased version, and

between trying to take notes of your answers and dealing with a cranky child, a

lot can be missed, misinterpreted and the whole diagnosis and recommendations

can swing in a different direction, one that may not reflect your child's true

condition and negatively impact his.her treatment. That was the case with two of

the early evals for us, one with the neurologist, one with the SLP who was

supposed to give a second

opinion on the apraxia , and both were very NOT child friendly in their

approach and whole demeanor, both had refused to get info I offered i9n

advance.  The result, a very difficult visit, no cooperation from the child, a

lot of tantrums and their ability to keep up with note taking isn't at all what

I'd consider optimal for all the examples I had to give. The end result was

money wasted, both thought my daughter was autistic or severely impaired in

addition to speech --SO NOT the case!!  So live and learn. you'd think since

they work with children a lot of them would know all this too and request info

in advance, but no, many don't want to be bothered beyond the visit and prefer

to wing it on the spot, which works great with older more compliant children,

but with little ones it can be a disaster. 

This has been my main critique of doctor's visits, because they spend too much

time asking the parents all sorts of questions and too little time with the

child mostly testing for autistic behaviors etc. when reading my letter in

advance would have given them a head start and they could better target the

evaluation skipping over some of the tings or probing deeper into others.

Plus it's hard for parents to be snappy and remember it all during that one hour

while also trying to control their child who may be expiring and screaming so

this type of letter serves a dual purpose, to give them the opportunity to

review the material in preparation for the eval, and also to remind you of

anything you could be leaving out and kicking yourself later or forgetting to

mention. 

Good luck and it's great that you're trying to help the docs do their job better

because they need all the help they can get, whether they ask for it or not,

it's in our best interest to make it as easy for them as possible or who knows

what we can so easily end up with when they evaluate a young child without much

speech.

All the best,

Elena--mom to Ziana, age 4, severely apraxic but otherwise a happy healthy child

and doing SUPER well now that appropriate PROMPT therapy and diet/supplements

have all been implemented

From: lnarram <na681@...>

Subject: [ ] what info should i bring to ped visit?

Date: Wednesday, August 27, 2008, 10:48 AM

Hi everyone. My name is and I am mom to a 21 month old DS who

does not talk yet. He babbles constantly and calls everything " dudn. "

Next week we have a visit with his pediatrician for a special 21 month

check up regarding his speech (or lack there of). What should I bring

to this doctor's visit that would be helpful in her evaluation? Should

I bring a list of words and phrases he knows, but can't say (it would

be huge!), a video of him babbling, etc.??

He was referred to an audiologist for an evalauation when he was 19

months. Poor thing was so distressed and cried so hard that he wasn't

really able to complete the test. He thought he was going to get a

shot, I think. The audiologist said he was marginal/normal and that he

should be reasessed in 6 months.

I guess what I'm asking is, what can I do to help the professionals?

thanks!

-leslie

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