letter to consultant

[jetcat32]

hi all

after receiving notification that my dla claim for DD1 has failed, i am going to appeal. As part of that, i am thinking of writing to her consultant - as she was referred to him originally for ?developmental/aspergers? Trouble is, he hasnt really assessed her re that, as she developed physical problems as well.

Would anyone have any suggestions on how to word the letter, as i am a very anxious person and worried that i will mess it up!

Any tips would be great!

bump

do you have special needs hv you could contact at all? any problems i go through mine who works closely with pediatrician

but you could just write it as it is really

dear xxxx

we have currently been turned down for dla and was wandering if there was anything you could do regarding the dx of dd ready for my appeal to them

as you know dd needs help with xyz which affects her xyz and dla would help us in getting her more help to ease these difficulties and try and move forward etc with different therapies that could benefit her in the long run.

just make sure you point out to consultant the difficulties you have every day

seems strange to me as you really dont need a dx to get dla how old is your dd? did you have help filling in form first time round?

you could ask for report from gp also and anybody else who has contact with your dd professionally and also you can update your own personal experiences on paper and word it from a very bad day so her full needs are expressed at there worst this could also help

sorry if useless information hope someone else may be able to offer wiser words good luck though xx

thanks guys, bubbla - that was really helpful! (and thanks for the bump lol!)

my DD is 11, and over the years has struggled with co-ordination, concentration etc. She was diagnosed with sensory processing disorder aged 7, but tbh, not a lot has happened since then. As she is becoming older, the differences between her and her peer are becoming more apparant - and she is becoming more self-concious about her abilities.

The main reason i applied for dla was for her problems with communication (she always needs pushing into talking with anyone - and takes a long time to say what she wants to say, which makes listening to her very difficult.) She has now been given colour cards at school, for if she needs help, the toilet etc. I was also advised (informally) that she may qualify for low mobility, as apart from the communication issue if she gets lost - if the slightest mishap happens, she simply panics and sits and cries. The last time this happened was when the bus was a couple of mins late, and her mate who usually gets the bus with her wasnt there.

Sorry for the long post, i am just really confused by the dla, and worried that i may offend the consultant (general peads doc) if i ask him for a letter. The dla people did write to the GP, but he didnt write back (we havent been with that practice long!)

all you can do is try and get as much information on how this affects your dd the thing is they gop on age and what the difficulties are and how different and how much more care your child needs than another child there age

you really have to write it as negative as possible everything needs to be your worst day so you may need to re write certain areas get back up from consultant explain how this makes her different from another child her age

so for example another 11 yr old can communicate freely my dd is prompt dependent and suffers communication difficulties then add if anyone sees her to help with this the fact she has to use color cards instead of language which clearly makes this different from another 11 yr old

also another 11 yr old could freely make the short journey home your dd is at risk of becoming lost as if change in routine she is unable to deal with this and will just sit and cry another 11 yr old could ask for help,

so you need to give examples of your dd needs and then back it up with what other 11 yr olds are capable of

write any examples such as bus incident , use of cards and any other incident that you can back your dd needs up

I have composed a draft - if anyone reads it, please could i have feedback! many thanks

^I have recently had DD's application for Disability Living Allowance turned down, and I was wondering if you would be willing to write a supporting letter for her, in preparation of my appeal to them.

As you are aware, DD was initially referred to you because of problems with her social skills, communication and concentration skills. The differences between her and her peers are becoming more obvious as she is getting older, and an award of dla would help us in getting her more help to ease her difficulties. I was advised that DD should meet the low care and low mobility component of dla; ?care? as she requires help with communication and social skills and ?mobility? as she needs someone with her for guidance and supervision when in unfamiliar places. A recent example of this is when she wanted to walk home from school herself. I had walked the route with her many times, she practiced the road names to the point where she knew them backwards, and how many minutes she would spend on each road. Then on the actual day she attempted it, because she came out of the school at a different exit, she became very confused and upset. She felt unable to ask for help (as she is prompt dependent) and it was only when another girl came past a few minutes later that DD was able to find her normal exit point and start again. If that girl hadn?t come along, I hate to think how long she would have sat there!

Following our last appointment, I have had a meeting with DD's school, as per your advice. They have now instigated colour cards so that DD can show when she needs help, instead of having to ask. They are also allowing her to leave lessons 5 minutes early, as she becomes quite anxious when surrounded by a lot of people. She is still really struggling with her concentration, and needs a lot of prompts and reminders to do the most simple of tasks, and if she has more than one thing to remember or to do, there is a high probability that she will forget both!

The school also suggested a referral to CAMHS, via my GP. I then had a chat with my GP, who stated that he did not feel a referral to CAMHS was necessary, as DD already was seeing you, and that you could undertake any assessments or referrals as necessary.

I am aware that you must be very busy, and I would very grateful if you could support DD's application for dla. I could then forward your letter with my application to appeal.^

that sounds great i would also ask for another visit to assess dd or to refer her for the CAMHS test to get a more accurate report of her needs and to possibly look for getting help within the school

also does she have 1-1 within the school or any person there to help with her needs as this could be useful if you could look into doing this also as she sounds like she could qualify for some 1-1 with having communication problems

the letter regarding dla sounds fine just make sure you ask for further help with her needs more assessments or another visit with consultant to see what next steps you can make in regards of getting more help for her

also speak to school and ask about 1-1 and what steps they can take on getting more help

who to talk to etc we are applying for statement for our ds who has ASD not sure if you can do same or see if can get grant funding for some extra support all new to me so not sure what route you would take for that but asking school could give you some ideas or someone else on here may know correct route xx

thanks bubbla - we are seeing consultant in May, so i think i will end the letter something along the lines of "As there is a short timescale for appealing for dla, I would appreciate your swift response with this. As regards to finding ways to help Jemma in the longer term, I look forward to our appointment in May."

I dont know why, but i am struggling to say that i want a full assessment for DD - i think it makes me sound like i am telling the doc his job!

there's nothing wrong with being the concerned mum they don't think bad of that at all they do there job and we do ours and that's wanting whats best for our children x

thanks - i will try and keep ur comments in mind! Tiny, i hope u dont mind me asking, but going the private route is something that i have been thinking about - which way did you do it (if i'm not being too nosy!)