The Paediatric Allied Health Developmental service provides assessment and short-term therapy support for children, from birth to school entry, who have difficulties or delays in more than one area of their development (e.g. communication and movement skills).
The Paediatric Allied Health Developmental Service provides comprehensive assessments for infants and young children who may need additional support with their development. The assessment provides an opportunity to learn more about your child’s strengths and abilities and the areas where they may need support. This helps us understand your child’s development and identify the best ways to support their progress.
The service is delivered by allied health clinicians, including Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Psychologists and Speech Pathologists.
What to expect from the service?
Once we receive your child’s referral, a member of our team will contact you. We will provide information about what happens next and offer guidance while your child is waiting for their assessment. Your child may see one or more allied health professionals during the appointment, depending on their individual needs. The assessment team may include the following health professionals:
- Occupational Therapy is for children who need help with daily activities. This may include self-feeding, playing, toilet training or dressing. Babies who use one hand more than the other, or children who have difficulty using their hands, may also need to see an Occupational Therapist.
- Speech Pathology is for children with communication difficulties. For example, children who are not using as many words as expected for their age (expressive language), have difficulty understanding what you say to them (receptive language), have challenges with social interaction (pragmatics) or have difficulty saying the sounds in words clearly (articulation). Children with stuttering or voice concerns should be referred to an alternative service.
- Physiotherapy is for children who need help to improve their large movement skills (gross motor skills) such as rolling, crawling, walking, jumping etc. Children who have muscle weakness, muscle stiffness, balance or coordination difficulties affecting their movement, may also need to see a Physiotherapist.
- Psychology is for children with cognitive, emotional or behavioural challenges. This may include children who find it hard to regulate their emotions, or who have difficulty with thinking skills like learning, memory, or concentration. It may also include children who feel very worried (anxious) or sad (depressed) a lot of the time.
The assessment usually takes 60–90 minutes. During the appointment, we will work with you to understand your child’s strengths, abilities and areas where they may need additional support. We will provide practical strategies and recommendations to help support your child’s development at home and in their everyday activities.
If your child would benefit from ongoing or longer-term support, we will discuss this with you and may recommend or refer your child to other appropriate services.
Location
Limited services for Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy only:
Contact us
To enquire about your referral:
Contact Community Access Services (CAS)