The information given me by various professionals who have repeatedly evaluated my daughter is the biggest issue that I face in my life. In order for me to resolve my issue I need to explore whether my issue lies with the professionals and the process of evaluation, or with me not wanting to accept that my child is disabled.My six and a half year old daughter, Malia, began to show signs of delayed development at age eighteen months. Her speech started to regress and there were also behavioral signs that were significant enough for me to ask our doctor for advice. When was not concerned to the point that I was I contacted Multnomah County Developmental Disability department and requested that they evaluate Malia. They agreed that that were delays, and made a referral to Portland Public Schools Early Intervention Program for special services suchas speech therapy, occupational therapy, and other early learning resources for children with disabilities. I also switched Malia to a pediatrician who immediately referred her for a full-scale evaluation at Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) where they have an evaluation clinic for children with disabilities.
At this point Malia was two and a half years old and this is where I began to take issue with the evaluation process.The process was a one day period where up to twelve doctors, psychologists, speech pathologists, audiologists, and occupational therapists each spent thirty minutes with Malia, evaluating her based on standard tests. After six hours with Malia, the professionals gathered together and discussed their conclusions. After their discussion, they called Malia and me in. They told me that their diagnosis for her was "a mild conductive bilateral hearing loss, language disorder and borderline intelligence."That was all the information they gave me, other than to tell me that Malia's pediatrician would receive a report and follow-up accordingly.
No special suggestions or support were offered to me or to Malia. I did not know the exact meaning of "borderline intelligence" at the time, so I assumed it meant her intelligence was not above average but not below. I found out at her second evaluation two years later that it means low intelligence, bordering on mental retardation. I followed up on the hearing loss with an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor and Malia had her tonsils and ...
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...lp the examiners have a more complete understanding of the child.
Another idea that I listed was to have the professional spend more time exploring the child's strengths andpossibilities in order to aid in designing a special program in which the child would thrive. I have spent the past four years being angry with the clinic at OHSU. I can truly say that all of this channeling and exercising (PMI and APC) has helped me to have a better understanding of why the testing is as it is, how it affects us, and most importantly, that a closed mouth does not get fed. If I want changes, I now understand that I have to speak up and talk to someone who can do something about it. Now that I am more clear about the process, I can offer something positive to help other families avoid the pain and anger thatI have endured. Knowing this, and feeling good about the road ahead, is a very good place for me to start. The most important realization for me is that Malia is still Malia, regardless of any label they placed upon her. In conclusion, whether or not I make a difference in modifying the evaluation process, I know that Malia is and always will be the same wonderful child she has always been.
2.Facts: This case was originally presented before the district court of Colorado in 1993 on behalf of the parents of Gregory Urban, a seventeen-year-old teen with severe mental disabilities. Gregory and his parents moved to Evergreen, Colorado in 1991. The parents wanted Gregory to go to Evergreen High School but the school district placed him at Golden High School where he participated in support services for children with severe disabilities. The support services at Golden High School were not available at Evergreen High. After the development of Gregory’s IEP his parents voiced objections to what they believed constituted violations of Gregory’s right to a free and appropriate public education. These violations included placement of Gregory outside his neighborhood school and failure to stipulate transition services in his IEP. After initially participating in the IDEA administrative process the parents filed a case with the district court claiming the school district violated Gregory’s rights under IDEA and ADA. The court ruled in favor of the school district by rejecting
When Susan was discovered, she was wearing a diaper and was thought to be much younger that what she appeared. There are evident signs for physical, mental, and emotional abuse and the child is severely malnourished. In the coming days after the discovering of Susan, it was found that Susan was kept isolated in one of the back bedrooms of her family home. She was either confined to a crib or tied to a child’s potty chair and was only given baby food. At this time, Susan it is not safe for her to return home and should be removed from future maltreatment. The mother has a history of vision problems and has been institutionalized in the past. When questioning the mother, she revealed that Susan’s father is the main source of violence in the home and has been abusing her throughout their marriage. After the eldest child ran off, the mother decided to take Susan and leave her husband. Both Susan and her mother are at risk of severe harm and need intensive services that focuses on their emotional, physical, and mental health. The mother and father should be evaluated and they need services that addresses on how to properly care for a mentally challenged child.
Timmy is resides at Pinecrest Intermediate Care Facility for the Mentally Retarded where he has remained since he was six months of age. The facility has been in regulation since the 1920’s. The facility is located high up on a hill positioned far from the surrounding neighborhood accessible only through a narrow winding road. The several staff members at the facility have been employed at the facility upwards of ten years or more (Walsh, 2013, p. 28). Timmy’s care is overseen by Sister Anne and other support staff includes; education specialist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, and a social worker, all of which report that Timmy is making progress towards the goals of his IEP (Walsh, 2013, p. 36); Although the
I read the Syllabus very carefully, as requested, and I do not have any questions. The topic I choose to do a web field trip on to search and return with one fact is “Specific Populations to assess: developmentally challenged”. I am using information from APA.org, which is where I found the one fact that was requested for this assignment. What I found was a set of guidelines for the treatment and assessment of people with disabilities that were developed by a task force of APA specialists. I am using the section “Testing and Assessment” which includes Guidelines 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 (APA Task Force, 2017) I found the fact that I am going to share under Guideline 15 which is “Psychologists strive to determine whether accommodations are appropriate for clients to yield a valid test score” (APA Task Force, 2017, Guideline 15).
483 F. Supp, 528, 531. It also found that “she performs better than the average child in her class and is advancing easily from grade to grade,” id., at 534, but “that she understands considerably less of what goes on in class than she would if she were not deaf” and thus “is not learning as much, or performing as well academically, as she would without her handicap,” id., at 532. This disparity between Amy’s achievement and her potential led the court to decide that she was not receiving a “free appropriate public education” which the court defined as “an opportunity to achieve [her] full potential commensurate with the opportunity provided to other children.” id., at 534. According to the District Court, such a standard “requires that the potential of the handicapped child be measured and compared to his or her performance, and that the remaining differential or ‘shortfall’ be compared to the shortfall experienced by nonhandicapped children.’ Ibid. The District Court’s definition arose from its assumption that the responsibility for “giving content to the requirement of an ‘appropriate education'” had ‘been left entirely to the federal courts and the hearing officers.’ Id., at
Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability, by Dillenburger, K., and Keenan M., published in 2009, summarized Nov 19, 2009
The. In this article, the author raises the question of whether or not parents of severely developmentally disabled children should be able to terminate their child’s physical in order to arguably improve their child’s quality of life. This calls into question how much power parents should be allowed to have over their child, in particular with regards to profound disability and the “Ashley Treatment”. Liao, S., Julian Savulescu, and Mark Sheehan. “The Ashley Treatment: Best Interests, Convenience, and Parental Decision-Making.”
Children’s Treatment Network (CTN) regrets that your son’s Diagnostic Assessment Report was inadvertently shared with the early interventionist who was in the process of transitioning Essa’s care to another early interventionist. Unfortunately the occupational therapist, Laurie Schultz, who participated in the diagnostic feedback session failed to share your wishes to only share the report with the two physicians named. On discussing the information with Laurie it was clear that this was truly an error on her part and she sincerely regretted not informing the early interventionist not to access the report. Not sharing the report with the early intervention staff involved is not the usual process and therefore on not hearing about any restrictions,
...lusion, I feel that it is heartbreaking that so much weight was placed on the shoulders of such a small child, unnecessarily. Even though he was born hearing, he was born into Deaf culture. His parents and a large part of his father’s family were deaf. He didn’t need to spend his whole childhood and early adulthood feeling like an outsider, never really feeling like he fit in. His grandparents as well as his parents, who went along with it, were only doing what they thought was best for him, what the doctors had told them was best. On Mark’s web site, in the section What is Deaf Culture? The Joy of Belonging, there is a quote that I think sums it up, “The cultural aspects of the Deaf world are vital in providing a healthy sense of well-being. It focuses on what Deaf people CAN do, as opposed to the pathological approach of focusing on what's wrong.” (Drolsbaugh Web)
Norman Kunc’s message toward the end of the video says, “It is sobering to realize how much the course of a life can be altered by a single decision.” This decision for his life was the decision his parent’s made to go against doctor’s recommendation. The quote symbolizes how a life can be altered by a single decision. This can relate to everyone, but it is something that can teach everyone a valuable lesson. It can teach families the importance of a good support system for a child, whether they have disabilities or not. Family is a driving factor for everyone and that should not change because the child has a disability. In addition, it explains to doctors that you can not always recommend or expect the worst. Doctors are experts and their
Previously, interview procedures were conducted on any client, regardless of background differences. Overtime it was noted that hearings were not fair to children due to them lacking the ability to follow and understand these interview procedures. New guidelines were instilled where the proceeding was designed
In 1987, Nancy Mairs argued that physical disabilities are not represented correctly in the media and television. And recently, Rosie Anaya disagrees by explaining that mental disability is suffering worse representation than physical disability. People with mental disabilities are not realistically portrayed on television. Thus, this unrealistic portrayal results in a negative stigma on mental disability and can further isolate those with disabilities.
Alison’s story is the perfect example of what many families must go through when faced with the possibility of having a child diagnosed with a learning disability. Alison was not diagnosed with visual and auditory dyslexia until the summer before entering college. However, while still a toddler, her symptoms had been brought to her mother’s attention by her sister’s teacher. Alison’s mother then noticed her habits in repeating words incorrectly and how Alison would need tactile clues to follow directions. At the recommendation of her kindergarten teacher, Alison was tested for learning disabilities and the results from the school psychologists were that she was acting stubborn or disobedient. Her family did not stop with the school’s diagnosis. They had private testing completed that confirmed Alison did not have a specific learning disability. The final word came from a relative that happened to be a psychologist. He insisted Alison would grow out of her difficulties. So Alison continued on with her entire elementary, middle and high school journey as a student and daughter with an undiagnosed learning disability.
It can be a tough task to correctly diagnosis some students with a high incidence disability. Henley, Roberta, and Algozzine (2009) state “Because there are no standard state criteria,...
What I found was that she was just as capable to do everything I could, and in some areas, much better than me. It was a huge learning experience, and one that I’m glad I had the opportunity to have. This assignment held some of my passion because I want others to be more educated going into the nursing field, or the public in general on hearing loss. Hearing loss is usually permanent, and is something that the patient will need to mourn the loss of and grieve. Our job as a nurse is to teach the public how to prevent it, and if something had been damaged to be able to walk with them on this journey and guide them with the diagnoses and treatment.