Welcome to Parent/Carer Education Sessions section of the Children and Young People’s Occupational Therapy Service website.
First level intervention – Our team provide regular parent/carer sessions on 2 topics, Understanding your Childs Sensory Needs and Activities of Daily Living. Depending on your child’s needs and the information on the referral, you may be invited to attend both sessions. These are currently taking place virtually.
The sessions consist of a presentation which is presented by qualified Occupational Therapists from the team. You will then consolidate your learning and ask child specific questions and have a discussion around strategies to implement. Questions are asked via the chat function on zoom and therefore, you do not need to turn on your microphone or video on if you do not wish. Questions can also be sent privately to the therapists and will be anonymised if required.
These sessions aim to equip you with a toolbox of strategies for you to implement into your child’s daily routine. You are also welcomed to forward the information you receive to your child’s school. If you feel it would be beneficial for a member of your child’s teaching team to attend the session with you, please call the department to let us know (we will require an email address to forward the invite to).
Research recommends for strategies to be implemented little and often throughout the day and therefore as parents/carers you are best placed to complete this.
After the sessions you will have access to the relevant resources including advice sheets, a useful resource list and an opportunity to provide your feedback. You will also be sent a diary log for you to record the implementation of strategies you have trialled. All referrals to the service are closed following your attendance to the sessions.
You are then expected to implement the strategies you have learnt for a minimum of 12 weeks. If concerns remain, you are invited to contact the service on 024 76 961455 to further discuss these concerns. A new referral is not required at this time. If you do not contact the service, your referral will remain closed.
Your telephone call will be forward to one of our qualified Occupational Therapists, who will return your call at the earliest opportunity, The therapist will ask what you have tried and for how long and how the concern affects participation in activities of daily living. You will be asked to discuss the diary log that you would have been sent following the workshops.
What will happen after my telephone call? You may be provided with further advice by a qualified Occupational Therapist to implement into your child’s daily routine.
Depending on the information provided, you may be invited to attend a clinic with a qualified Occupational Therapist. This will be discussed during your telephone call.