Occupational Therapy Evaluation
Occupational Therapy: Questions Often Asked By Our Families
WHAT IS AN OT EVALUATION ALL ABOUT?
Q: Why is my child seeing an Occupational Therapist?
A: Your pediatrician or another health care professional may have referred you to a pediatric occupational therapist to evaluate your child’s ability to perform activities of daily living (brushing hair and teeth, getting dressed, eating, etc.), play (interacting with other children and toys), coordination and overall motor skills (coloring, cutting and handwriting). The occupational therapist will work closely with you and your family to understand your concerns for your child, develop goals and a treatment plan to achieve those goals.
Q: What will happen during the evaluation?
A: The occupational therapist will obtain information regarding your child’s medical history and developmental milestones (rolling, sitting, walking etc.). You might be asked questions on how your child responds to sensory information. The therapist will evaluate your child’s motor skills including, mobility in your child’s joints, posture, muscle strength, gross motor, fine motor, and visual motor and/or visual perceptual skills and sensory related to the reason for referral for the evaluation. The therapists will generate the evaluation findings through the use of standardized assessments, clinical observations, clinical questionnaires and your observations and reports.
Q: How long will the evaluation take?
A: The evaluation may take up to two hours.
Q: Will there be time to discuss the findings? If therapy is recommended how long will my child need services?
A: The occupational therapist will discuss the preliminary evaluation findings with you at the end of the evaluation and will discuss areas for improvement, a plan of care, duration, frequency and suggestions for occupational therapy treatment. If treatment is not recommended, the evaluating therapist will discuss other resources, options and recommendations.
Q: What is my role during the evaluation?
A: The therapist will ask you questions regarding your child’s medical history, development and areas of concern. Please make sure the person who brings your child for the evaluation has all of the relevant information readily available.
Q: When will I get a report?
A: You should receive a written report within 3 weeks. If you have an account, visit our Patient Portal at My Children’s Specialized Patient and Family Portal to access the evaluation report. If you do not have an account, please ask a Registration Representative for your patient code.
Q: What do I need to bring?
A: Please bring:
- A current photo ID (license)
- Insurance card
- Referral if needed
- Prescription
- School reports, including goals for school based therapies if they are received
- Prior evaluations
- Name/addresses of individuals you might want the report sent to
- Current list of medications. If your child is on medication and regularly takes it prior to the evaluation, please ensure this happens the day of the evaluation.
- Bring any equipment that your child regularly uses such as eyeglasses, braces and splints etc.
- Guardian papers (if joint, or sole custody)
- A list of questions to ask the therapist.
Q: What should my child wear?
A: Please have your child wear loose comfortable clothing and a pair of socks.
Q: Can I bring my other children?
A: If possible, it is recommended that siblings stay home so that the parent can give their undivided attention during the evaluation. Understanding that child care is sometimes difficult, when bringing siblings, it may be helpful to bring another adult and activities to occupy the siblings during the evaluation.
Q: What if therapy is recommended, will my insurance pay for it?
A: Medical coverage will vary, but many health insurance plans cover our services. Please contact your insurance company to verify if your plan offers a benefit for occupational therapy services. If therapy is recommended, our Insurance Verification and Authorization Department will obtain authorization for treatment. You may be scheduled to start treatment on the day of the evaluation. If not, scheduling will be calling you to get information regarding your availability. Once the treatment is approved, you will receive a phone call from our scheduling department to schedule an appointment for treatment. There may typically be a waitlist for therapy times which need to be scheduled in the late afternoon, after school times.
Created by the Family Advisory Council at Children’s Specialized Hospital, dedicated to collaborating with Hospital leadership and staff -- empowering families to provide valuable input toward improving organizational policies and practices.
