We see children and young people in different ways, depending on need, age, service provision.
If your referral meets the service criteria and is accepted, your child will be placed on our waiting list (parents and referrer will receive an acknowledgement letter that the referral has been accepted).
How we will contact you:
Our Pathway Care Coordinator will send you a letter outlining your appointment with us. The appointment's name, place, time, and the name of the OT you will be seeing are all specified in the letter.
We have a number of settings where you may be seen so make sure you check the location. Your child may be seen at West Ham Lane Health Centre, Appleby Health Centre or Joyce Campbell Clinic. There may be times where it is more appropriate that we see your child at school or at nursery.
In some cases you may be attending one of our parent coaching sessions, in which your first appointment will be alongside other parents.
What if I need an Interpreter?
It is usually already on our system if you require an interpreter and this will be provided for you. If at the first appointment you feel an interpreter is no longer required, please let your OT know and they can cancel the interpreter.
Please let your OT know if you are also not comfortable with the interpreter as it may be possible to change this.
What should my child wear to their OT appointments?
We ask that children come to the sessions appropriately dressed in comfortable clothing. Many of our sessions will involve movement and/or messy play.
What will the OT do during the appointment?
We understand that we don't know you or your child, so the goal of the first session will be to get to know you both. The OT will observe your child playing and observe what activities prefer doing.
Your child will play alongside the OT as a role model for specific play activities.
The OT is evaluating your child as they go about their daily lives. They may ask your child to draw, cut, jump, hop, tie their shoes, as well as other activities to help them identify what they can do well and what they need a little more assistance with.
For older children, we aim to include them as much as we can during the appointments. We like to hear from them to find out how they are managing at home and at school and what help they might need.
What will happen next?
After your initial appointment, the OT will have gathered more information about how your child is managing with everyday tasks. They will also have found out what the priorities are from either you as the parent/caregiver or the young person themselves. These goals will help shape any future appointments that may be offered. If appropriate, the OT may contact your child's school to discuss how things are going and if they have any concerns.
There are some occasions when, after meeting you and your child, that everything is going well and you feel that OT at this time is not necessary, this can be discussed with your therapist so that a plan for the future can be put in place.
Once my child's case is closed, does that mean I will not be able to be seen again?
Re-referrals are considered mainly for new areas of concerns. For continued difficulties in the same areas, families and schools are advised, in the first instance, to refer to the last OT report and recommendations that were provided. Families/schools need to be able to demonstrate they have worked on the previous advice and recommendations given before a new referral can be considered.
