Saturday, March 23, 2013

WK 3 Research that Benefits Children and Families "Early Intervention"

I read a research article that focused on families and children with a developmental delay or a diagnosed disability called “First Experiences With Early Intervention: A National Perspective.” This study focused on “families’ initial experiences in determining their child’s eligibility, interactions with medical professionals, efforts required to obtain services, participation in planning for services, satisfaction with services, and interactions with professionals.

It was exciting to read that more families interact with their medical professional than not, which shows that more families are concerned about their child’s development.   I was also excited to read that a very small number of families did not receive services right away.  This shows that families are concerned about their child’s development and the early intervention services is here to make sure children do not fall behind and get them ready for success.  There was a high percentage in family’s participating in planning with the professionals for services and would continue interacting with the professional and their child.  I have been in homes where a mother does not show interest in working with their own child and the only interaction that child gets is when I would come and work on the goals. 

Here is a chart of Percentage of children beginning early intervention services……..
 
The Chart below shows families and professionals working together……

 After reading I was glad to see that more families are concerned about their child’s developmental growth and works with their child when the professionals are not there to continue working on their child’s developmental growth goals.   I hope I am able to work with families that care about their child and not to many of the one’s I have worked with. 

4 comments:

  1. We know as ECE professionals that the relationship we build with families is a vital piece of the work we do with children. Integral to that relationship is input from parents and the support they give their children. Showing an interest in our children extends to putting in the work-at home. However, parents also need support in understanding what their role is and how to help their children.
    Thanks for sharing!

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  2. Nina, this would be a great research subject. In my experience when parents are first told that there is an area we would like to get a professional look into any delay, they get very defensive. One family took 2 1/2 years before they would seek services. I have been told by professionals that sometimes they need to hear it from different people before they move forward. It is so important for parents to talk the role of being proactive at home.
    Thank you for your post!

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  3. Nina,

    Early intervention is a great research topic, and I feel needs more advocacy. I know from personal experience I got services for my son with EI almost immediately after birth. (At just 2 months old, he started physical therapy, and additional therapy services were added on.) I love the philosophy of EI, as it seeks to incorporate the families into the the therapy services (at least that's what the EI program does in my area.) Professionally, I have witnessed some families really dragging their feet to get professional help for their children. Even with developmental questionnaires that showed a delay, these parents still struggled with the fact that their child needed additional help. It's nice to read that this research study is showing that parents are seeking EI services early on in their child's life. Thanks for sharing this resource!

    Erin

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  4. I am glad of the finding in having more and more families engaging in their child's educational plan. It does not easy have to participate from meetings with specialists talking about a topic that might be new for parents. However, parents who are new in the disability process show interest in developing goals, and agree in provide all the services needed to work with the child's educational plan. It is sad when parents are detached from their child's education, especially from children who need the extra help.

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