OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY

[hifi]

had conversation with dd headteacher at nursery and she has suggested ot for her major motor skills.

Dont know much about it yet but head said very difficult to get in our area as they keep leaving and at present there isnt one.

Just wondered if anyone had found an ot therapist who practices privately. Im in London if anyone has a reccomendation, thanks.

There is a list here. On NHS you can wait a long time for an assessemnt (ds waited 18 months) and then only get a cursory treatment unless the problems are quite profound.

would you advise to private straight away? nursery says they can get her assesed but i would like to see her treated before she starts school.

I'd get her asssessed and then see tbh . Can be very ££ and for preschoolers they may have access to group sessions rather than individually at school age (as ds was) .

thanks lizs its a start.

we paid £500 for assessment for dd and pay £65 an hr for treatment. Worth its wait in gold for dd. I would pay anything for progress she has made,

emandjules, did you try gp etc before, how old is your dd?

dd has sensory problems rather than motor skills and i know that is not sensory therapy is not often offered by nhs. We just arranged it ourselves. With a problem with motor skills, i would try gp first they might give you an idea of how long it will take to see ot. Services and waiting times seem to differ from place to place

she is 5

thanks

We got our occupational theraphy appointment very quickly. (we are in hertfordshire) My son only waited 6 weeks to be seen by an NHS OT. It was helpful as works closely with my son's ex physio.

The OT assessed my son and visited him in school. He has an exercise programme and the school has been given loads of suggestions to help with writing.

dd waited 18 months and her cerebral palsy is the severest you can get. And even now the OT comes once every 6 weeks for one hour.

wow such different waiting times, so bad for those who need it.

What is awful is that the speed a child gets occupational theraphy has nothing to do with medical need.

I was told our OT dept does differentiate between a medical need and a functional need, the former seemingly getting a higher priorty.

Hifi, the waiting lists will vary depending on where in the country you are.

Speak to your GP first - schools dont always know the difference between OT and physio, and it may not neccessarily be OT thats needed, especially if the problem is with motor skills.

The trouble with going private is that sometimes you get to see NHS therapist quicker than you thought, then they cant do some of the assessment because the private one has already done it. (Some tests cant be repeated within 6 months or a year as the results arent reliable.) And most therapists prefer to assess a child themselves, rather than accept what someone else has found.

If you know for sure that there is, say an 18 month WL, then its worth looking for a private assessment. If you did go private and it turned out you needed Physio instead or as well, a good private OT should be able to recommend someone.

But I would def speak to GP first, or even phone local Child Development centre to find out what the situation is.

We found ourselves a private PT, and she employs OTs as well. We started PT in July, and DS2 has also had a couple of OT sessions.

DS2 was assessed by the NHS in September, and since then he has seen the OT twice (not since October though), and the PT twice.

We have had DS2 seen at the Bobath Centre in North London, where they have PTs, OTs and SALTs. We had to pay for it ourselves though. Our local PCT doesn't fund Bobath treatment as the PTs are already Bobath trained. Which is fine if you could see them, but DS2 has seen them 2 times in getting on four months.

It's atrocious.

Hifi, if you would like the name and number of DS2's private PT let me know - she can put you touch with an OT as well.

hi everyone, we have a meeting with teachers this afternoon so will get more info on what they think, mm22bys, those nos might be useful, i will get back to you later. thanks very much everyone, you have given me more to go on.

just had meeting, she is always falling over which they say could be a problem, also running etc, we knew this but she didnt start walking till 22months so is to be expected.

we are in haringey and head said would be ages for an assesment so start with gp then possibly have to pay. see how we go.

hope you get sorted. NHS is a right mess that you have to pay privately. I expected to due to specialist therapy dd needs, but when it is for functional problems, you should not have to pay. I am sure there are loads of good private OT round your area, seem to be loads down south. Good luck