Questions re seeing a develepmental ped

[Anonymous]

Do you go to one independently from your regular ped? Do you go to you regular ped first to get a referral or assistance in finding one?

[Anonymous]

We ended up seeing Dr. Dan Shapiro based on the dcurbanmom recommendations. Of course I did my own research as well. Shapiro ended up being a godsend for us. We also asked our pediatrician who recommended Chuck Conlon as well as a couple others doctors near us in Virginia. We got lucky because Shapiro happened to have openings when we called.

[Anonymous]

Our speech therapist referred us to one.

[Anonymous]

I asked our regular pediatrician for a recommendation (we don't have to have referrals with our insurance) and he gave me a couple of names of average dev peds that could probably see us immediately and the name of a premier dev ped who it would probably take a while to get into. He highly recommended the premier dev ped but if we needed an immediate appointment, see the average dev ped while we were waitlisted and then switch.

[Anonymous]

Who was the premier?

[Anonymous]

Who were the "average" ones who could see you right away?

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone. I don't need a referral for insurance. I was just wondering if it is better to go through your regular ped (for continuity of care, courtesy, etc.) or if it is completely separate.

DD is almost 18 months and only now are we realizing that a developmental ped might be necessary. She's in physical therapy and will be starting speech therapy. I have been very happy with our regular ped, but I'm thinking it's time to get her evaluated by someone with more experience with her delays. I just don't know how to go about it. I'm thinking I will start with asking our ped.

If anyone has any recs for anyone in the MoCo or NW DC area, please let me know. I would probably be interested in an "average" one that could see us quickly. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

10:04 here. I don't remember the names of the average dev peds, I believe one was at Children's. But, it was 5 years ago and my memory isn't what it once was and I actually never got an appointment with them because we were able to get in to the 'premier' dev ped in a reasonable time - it's Dr. Chuck Conlon.

OP - if you have a good relationship with your pediatrician and you like him/her, my advice would be to discuss your desire to have an evaluation by a dev ped. If you have some dev peds in mind (there are names of several good ones floating around this forum), talk to your pediatrician about them. He may also be able to refer you to someone who could get you in quicker, if need be.

Sometimes I ask for recomendations from our pediatrician, sometimes I don't. For example, I got the name of an opthamologist from this forum who is really good with special needs kids. My youngest with SN needed an eye exam so I made my own appointment but made sure my pediatrician got a report. Also from this forum, I learned about PROMPT certified SLPs in Springfield and switched to them. At our next visit to the pediatrician, I update him on what we've been doing as well as reporting back to him on what care providers I've had good experiences with and who I've not. He's also looking for good people to refer patients to and likes to get feedback. I'm the case manager for my kids but he's still a part of my team. I bounce ideas off him, I get referrals when I need it, if I need a quick note from a Dr. for something I can ask him and he gets it to me quickly. But, we also see him at least every three months to check in and get refills on medication. HTH

[Anonymous]

Can I ask what the Dev Peds are doing for your plan with your kids? My DD has autism, and was diagnosed by an SLP and Dev Ped at KKI almost 3 years ago. We've never had a follow-up visit. We followed their recommendations to get her into an ABA-based school (FCPS PAC, and now Kindergarten), get her speech therapy (we do private and in school), continue with OT (again, she gets private and in school). She's since had other evaluations, including the most recent round of testing via the school system (they did a fantastic job). Her development continues to progress, and she's making great strides with her communication, cognitive, and social skills. She is still delayed, and I don't think anyone would remove the autism diagnosis. She's definitely a bit of an anxious kid, and I've talked off and on over the past couple of years with her teacher and regular pediatrician about seeing if anti-anxiety medication would help when she's older (she's 5). Should we go back to a Dev Ped for a follow-up? Is there something we are missing in our overall plan/care for her that a Dev Ped could help us with?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can I ask what the Dev Peds are doing for your plan with your kids? My DD has autism, and was diagnosed by an SLP and Dev Ped at KKI almost 3 years ago. We've never had a follow-up visit. We followed their recommendations to get her into an ABA-based school (FCPS PAC, and now Kindergarten), get her speech therapy (we do private and in school), continue with OT (again, she gets private and in school). She's since had other evaluations, including the most recent round of testing via the school system (they did a fantastic job). Her development continues to progress, and she's making great strides with her communication, cognitive, and social skills. She is still delayed, and I don't think anyone would remove the autism diagnosis. She's definitely a bit of an anxious kid, and I've talked off and on over the past couple of years with her teacher and regular pediatrician about seeing if anti-anxiety medication would help when she's older (she's 5). Should we go back to a Dev Ped for a follow-up? Is there something we are missing in our overall plan/care for her that a Dev Ped could help us with?

10:04 again. It sounds like you've really done a lot of great things! We only see the dev ped about once a year for a follow up. I may e-mail him in the interim if something comes up and he's very good at responding. For example, my oldest (eight yo)has ADHD and over the last year we've seen increasing levels of anxiety. When we saw him in the spring for our yearly visit, we talked about it. I'd done some research about it, had some ideas and we discussed a plan of action. When it came time to implement the plan, I emailed him that I was doing it. (FWIW, we're participating in an NIH study on anxiety but your DD is too young for this particular one). Unless something unexpected happens, I don't expect to see him again before the yearly visit. We keep seeing him because, as good as our regular ped is, I don't know who else could really give me feedback on things. In your case with the anxiety at such a young age, I think a dev ped might be a good idea, especially if you're considering medication. Who else would be better able to give you feedback on your overall plan? I really don't know who else would be better.