Tips for an Effective Treatment Program

Have realistic expectations

Parents should note that it can take several months and in certain cases, more than that, to achieve treatment goals. Parents are cautioned that in many cases they may not see any changes after only a few treatments.

See it through

A key point in achieving treatment goals is continuing with the treatment for the entire length of the plan.

Follow the home programs

An important part of most treatment plans is for parents to follow home programs with their children that have been recommended by their therapists.

Understand that your therapist is not just playing with your child

Therapists need to engage children by providing therapy in a way that is fun and playful and therefore many therapy sessions will involve toys or games. While it may appear that a therapist is merely playing with a child, each activity is rooted in therapy session goals and skill enhancement techniques.

Avoid missing sessions

Studies show that children must receive treatments at least once per week to show improvements in various performance, hearing and speech measures as well as in developmental scores.

Start early, but it is never too late

A number of studies show that the earlier in a child’s life the intervention or treatment begins, the more effective it may be. Studies also show that children who receive required interventions later in childhood still perform better than children who require interventions, but receive none at all.