Att therapists who go down to the morahs

amother

Lily

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 2:50 pm

Everyone is also mixing up all kinds of therapy altogether. Not all therapy is equal, every child is in a different place. Physiotherapy and speech therapy are very different. And one child might only have mild delays and the therapy is just giving them that extra boost, another child might be seriously delayed and it's even more important to work together.
At the end of the day, the therapist is going in for a short session on an infrequent basis. The child will get the most out of the therapy if the parents are then able to follow through on a daily basis themselves to support the therapist.
I believe strongly in collaborative work, where there is a team around the child, working together, and that will help the child progress the most. And it might just be wishful thinking, but it is a pity as the child is losing out by the therapist working in isolation.

keym

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 2:57 pm

amother NeonPurple wrote:

I write a session note electronically at the end of every session. If the agency can figure out a way for it to be automatically sent to the parent then I have no problem with that.

Parents should realize that the whole session is 30 minutes, if I have to waste time writing a session note for the agency + writing a note/text to the parent+ picking up the child and bringing them back + waiting a few minutes if the teacher asks me to...we're not left with much time for therapy

School based therapy is very limited and it is not the therapists' fault. If you feel your child needs more than that, then take them after school to a center. I personally take one of my children after school because the school cannot provide what we need. If you choose to go with school based therapy then you need to accept it for what it is and not blame the therapists. It's a very very hard job

Except I specifically said I'm asking about EI where the therapist goes either to the house or playgroup, and the timing is such that therapy happens at playgroup or daycare, yet tge parents are still legally allowed tp be partnered with

amother

Freesia

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 3:49 pm

I'm a school based therapist. I always tell parents that I'll take their lead in terms of communication. There are some parents who don't ever respond to the messages I send every few sessions, and in that case I stop reaching out unless they initiate. There are parents who would like me to give some sort of feedback after every session and I try to do that for them, including pictures or videos so they can visualize what we do together, especially if I'm giving homework. I do correspond more when parents are paying out of pocket because I'm being compensated at a fair rate in those cases, and I can appreciate the investment that this is for them.

I've had kids in school based therapy myself and it felt reasonable when I was on the other end and therapists communicated in a similar manner to the way I practice.

mommy100

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 4:12 pm

As a EI speech therapist in NY we are supposed to be in touch with the parents or caregiver after every session. Do we all do it?absolutely not it’s very hard when you are running from one session to the next and they are only a half hour long. I do try to send mom a quick text or call every other week. If a mom wants more I always give my number and tell them to call or text whenever they want. It’s very hard when you have a large case load like 10-15 students a day to call and text each mom every time especially when nothing new to report.

amother

Wandflower

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:07 pm

amother Birch wrote:

As a therapist,it’s extremely annoying of you. therapists are not paid for calling a mom- yes she should update but due to the poor framework of the job it’s on her time. You should call 2-3x a year tops or you will be overstepping and she may not have patience for your kid.

2-3 times a year is not sufficient! Monthly is reasonable, if you can't then maybe bi monthly. Parents have a right to know what's going on with their child. Therapists are hired to target specific concerns not for the therapist to do minimal work.

amother

Jasmine

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:19 pm

I know school therapists work very hard and it is appreciated. But I would like to point out that it is not the parents/child's fault that the therapist chooses to see 10 to 15 kids a day so she can earn a specific amount of money. In order for the therapy to work, the therapist should find a way to communicate with the parent somehow. I would say at least once a week 2 to 3 lines in a notebook explaining what your working on, if child needs specific practice etc. E.g. Ruchie is working on the color blue. Please help her find objects with this color....

Also, a 30 minute session by law does not include you picking up and dropping off the child. You're supposed to leave time for that between sessions. That's the nature of the job. You're supposed to pick up the child,, do a 30 minute session and then send her back.

Additionally, many parents would love to do after school therapy. Unfortunately, the contracts schools make with the agencies make it extremely difficult to get an rsa, forcing majority parents to give their kids in school therapy

amother

NeonPurple

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:20 pm

amother Wandflower wrote:

Lol as if we do minimal work...you are seriously clueless as to a therapist's job. We do therapy sessions all day back to back with no break. We come home starving, thirsty, hot and tired from running around the school building all day, and desperate for the bathroom. Many therapists I know do additional sessions in the evenings and on sundays to supplement our income. Then we need to spend hours and hours of our own time preparing for sessions and doing endless paperwork.

I have 20-25 students and there are simply are not enough hours in the day for me to make phone calls to 25 parents every month. Do your expect your child's teacher to call you once a month?

So many therapists are getting burned out and leaving the field. Many schools are having difficulty finding therapists. Believe me, the job is not as easy as it seems and we are not lazy people trying to do the bare minimum.

amother

Wandflower

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:24 pm

keym wrote:

Im reading here that it's unreasonable for a parent to expect the therapist to communicate regularly.
Im wondering if any of the answers would be different if we're talking about EI therapy taking place at a daycare or playgroup Morah because the therapists schedule couldn't work at home.

Yes it is different with EI therapists because they work with kids under 3 & they get compensated for travel time so there is more leeway. School based therapists usually have back to back sessions & only get paid for the actual session. I'm a parent not a therapist, if I'm wrong you are all welcome to correct me.

amother

Geranium

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:28 pm

amother Jasmine wrote:

If the therapists cut their caseload by 50%, odds of your kid getting therapy are extreme thin, as there won't be enough therapists to go around.

And being an annoying parent will decrease the likelihood of your child getting therapy the next year as nobody will want to service them and deal with you. Obviously there are reasonable demands, such as wanting to get periodic updates, but daily updates are a big burden and the reality is, your child will be last on the list to get picked up. Which may work in your favor, because if there is no therapist to service a child you can get an rsa and find your own provider.

amother

Daylily

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:29 pm

amother Wandflower wrote:

Uh no we don't. At least I don't. Ei therapist In NJ. That being said I usually text mom every other week or more if she wants that.

amother

Wandflower

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:30 pm

amother NeonPurple wrote:

No one said therapists don't work hard. Therapy is not a classroom, each student has goals to work on & it doesn't matter to me as a parent how many students you have. My child was mandated therapy due to xyz issue & I have a right to know what's going on every month- 6 weeks- whatever you can manage. Otherwise how would I even know you're putting in the required time/ effort? It's not a free for all. If you can't manage 25 students then maybe it's not a reasonable caseload.

amother

Geranium

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:34 pm

amother Wandflower wrote:

Do you speak to the teachers every month?

fc8899

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:36 pm

[quote="

Also, a 30 minute session by law does not include you picking up and dropping off the child. You're supposed to leave time for that between sessions. That's the nature of the job. You're supposed to pick up the child,, do a 30 minute session and then send her back.
actually, you are incorrect. we have been taught starting from graduate school to learn how to utilize every single second of therapy.
the second the client is with me walking to the therapy room, that is when the therapy starts. if the client comes on her own then there is “extra time”. why do you think I have to add 5 minutes of being the client to and 5 minutes from the therapy room.
where did you see this law?

amother

Winterberry

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 6:56 pm

amother NeonPurple wrote:

This! There is no down time for a therapist. You are ON all day! Seriously, if a child is coming late for a session because she's finishing up a math test, I get excited because that means I can go to the bathroom. There's no recess, there's no lunch, there's no quiet work, it's all encompassing all the time. And it's incredibly physically draining. By the end of the day my head is spinning. And yes, burnout is massive.

Parents also think therapists are making tons of money. They're not. Between cancelled sessions and forced vacations, at the end of the day therapists don't come home with a large salary.

As far as communication with parents goes, in EI (at least in NJ) paperwork is built in to the session. It's an hour long session, but it's 45 minutes direct contact and 15 minutes parent communication. So essentially the therapist is being paid for the time spent communicating with the parent. And yes, it is REQUIRED.

A school based therapist on the other hand does not have paperwork scheduled into her session. If you are a parent that wants an update every week or every session, maybe you can request that your therapist end her session 3-5 minutes early so she can send home weekly/daily updates.

I can understand the desire of a parent to know what is going on in therapy (especially parents that are paying privately). But unless you specifically request that the therapist take time from the session to communicate with you, most therapists simply don't have the time to send home a note after each session.

amother

DarkYellow

Tue, Sep 12 2023, 7:04 pm

fc8899 wrote:

This is not the law. In fact, any time used therapeutically is part of the session. Many of us use the picking up/ dropping off time, incorporating it into goals.
Also, I was told by someone involved in compliance that season notes must be worn during the session.