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Original poster

My daughter's speech therapist has discharged her for missing one appointment!!

27 replies

mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 19:09

Hi, I've just recieved a letter from my daughters speech therapist saying that she's been discharged from the service for failure to attend. Shock

She only missed one session a few months ago, since then we've phoned a nomber of times and left about 3 messages saying sorry we missed a session, can we arrange another time? She hasn't got back to me at all and now we've been taken off her list. Angry

I might right to them saying we've been trying to contact you and you haven't responded to any of my messages etc.

She'll be starting a new school soon hopefully, moving from private to state. Would her new school sort out her speech therapy then?

OP posts:
moondog · 25/10/2010 19:14

Why did she miss a session and did you warn them in advance

Lougle · 25/10/2010 19:25

mummyloveslucy, I think that does tend to be policy, if you didn't prewarn them, because their lists are soo long.

Perhaps you could phone the SALT department at your hospital, and explain the circumstances, apologise, and ask that she be reinstated. They may take pity on you.

Otherwise, the school might refer her for SALT, but she will join the waiting list like any new referral.

daisy5678 · 25/10/2010 19:27

That's one of the ways they're cutting down on SALT eligibility here. Don't attend an appointment/ respond to a letter/ return a form = no more SALT.

TheFallenMadonna · 25/10/2010 19:29

Blimey. DD had to wait for 13 months from referral to first appointment, so I know about waiting lists, but it seems very hard on OP's DD, who IIRC needs a lot of support, to drop her after one mistake (presumably) by her parents.

moondog · 25/10/2010 19:29

When you are one SALT dealing with literally hundreds of kids; one has to be pretty tough and only deAL WITH THOSE WHO WILL COOPERATE &100 per cent with the dept/

genieinabottle · 25/10/2010 19:33

With NHS speech therapy, they expect you to attend all sessions and if not to have a valid reason and if possible to let them know in advance.
When DS was offered his first lot of block sessions, he was nearly taken of the list as he missed one session, the 1st one. Not due to us but due to them.
The letter informing us of the appointements was sent to us the day after the 1st sesssion!! Confused
When i phoned the office they did not believe me. But i had send them a copy of the actual letter which was dated only 1 day prior to the 1st session! That helped a bit Wink

Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 19:34

She did miss one session, it was our fault we just forgot. We phoned straight away and left a message as she never answers the phone.

I might just wait until she starts her new school then and go back on the waiting list. Maybe we'll get a better SALT next time. She wasn't really making any progress with the last one.

OP posts:
Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 19:37

We do co-operate 100% (usually) She only missed one session. At least we actually do her excercises with her at home, a lot of the other parents don't.

OP posts:
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 25/10/2010 19:40

'The letter informing us of the appointements was sent to us the day after the 1st sesssion'

Yes this happened to us too. Then we got a letter telling us that we have been taken off caseload for missing a session Hmm

Luckily it didn't take long to fix. I didn't even have to get cross (for once), just explained. It didn't happen automatically. Lots of 'well I'll have to ask the manager and get back to you' nonsense and then no returned calls etc. but it did get sorted. Stressful though.

moondog · 25/10/2010 19:41

Sorry you must accept that as a limited and expensive resource, yoiu cannot qfford to fritter it on people who forget/ You pay for it as a tax payer_if you are one: The a,ount of people who ,forget, is staggering; hence zero tolerance.

TheFallenMadonna · 25/10/2010 19:43

I am a taxpayer. I still think 'one strike and you're out' is harsh.

And the service isn't being frittered on the people who forget. It's being frittered on their children.

TheFallenMadonna · 25/10/2010 19:45

And we waited 3 months for our initial appointment with the SALT following referral from our HV (before the 13 months wait for the sessions to start) because of a mistake at their end. HV had to chase them up.

moondog · 25/10/2010 19:47

Noone denies that it is hRSH BUT THERE IS A LIMITED AMOUNT TO SHARE SO TOGHNESS ESSENTIQL/

Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 19:53

I understand but she needs it more than some of the others. Wink They give speech therapy to 18 month olds down there.

OP posts:
moondog · 25/10/2010 19:55

If she needed it that much, why did you forget then/

Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 19:58

Ha-ha! I knew you'd say that. Grin I'm only human.

OP posts:
moondog · 25/10/2010 20:00

So are they/ Only so much one can do/

Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 25/10/2010 20:03

O.K, I guess I'll just have to wait on the list again when she starts her new school. Hopefully then they'll see her at the school too.

OP posts:
lisad123isgoingcrazy · 25/10/2010 20:51

same rule applies here and for eye clinics too.
SALT rang me today to tell me they are moving DD2 to another SALT group. This was at 9.30am this morning and new group started todat at 11am!!

IndigoBell · 25/10/2010 21:17

MLL - when Lucy starts her new state school you'll be saving heaps and heaps on school fees. Why don't you get private SALT then?

I think it's disgusting that you've been kicked off the NHS list. A lot of our problems have been caused by being discharged from the paed and the opthamoligist for missing appointments we couldn't attend.

But anyway, if you can afford private I just wouldn't bother with the NHS and waiting lists at all.....

madsadlibrarian · 25/10/2010 21:35

not quite the same but...another cautionary tale:
DS had 10 weeks of speech therapy lined up- objective to work on sounds - specifically "l" "r" "n" and "s" - he mastered "s" early on, but no progress after that - there were 2 more appts left - and he clearly wasn't going to "get" it any time soon. So I suggested (and SALT seemed to agree) that someone else should benefit from her time rather than her sitting flogging a dead horse for 2 more sessions. I thought I was being public spirited.

BAD IDEA -she put on his notes that "mother doesn't wish to continue with treatment". Our "refusal" of therapy meant his next referral was rejected. repeatedly. (he did get back on their books eventually).

cansu · 26/10/2010 17:00

I really think it's ridiculous to be discharged for missing an appointment. The only reason for being discharged should be not requiring help anymore. You can take the argument that there are long waiting lists to any NHS service. OP's dd has a right to receive a service, missing one appointment does not make her any less deserving, just human!

Original poster
mummyloveslucy · 26/10/2010 19:14

I might go private, I'll see what her new school can offer her first. They might have their own SALT who's attached to the school.

OP posts:
triplechoc · 26/10/2010 20:54

cansu - so by that rule SLTs should keep seeing children for an infinite amount of time even if they missed repeated appointments?

If you can't make an appointment, ring up and cancel it, if you forget about it then ring up and apologise.

Yes, one strike and you're out IS harsh, but it's a policy borne out of necessity.

cansu · 27/10/2010 06:35

triplechoc - missing repeated appointments is totally different to missing ONE. OP did ring up and apologise.