LifeSkills Teletherapy Program

LifeSkills Teletherapy Program

 

LifeSkills Teletherapy Program

Including Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy

Introduction

LifeSkills was founded in 1993 and has been committed to helping people with Sensory Processing difficulties with our unique therapy approach for over 26 years; we are also providing Sensory-Neuro-Developmental Physical Therapy.

For many years, people who live outside of the Central Florida area have sought our services and requested that we develop a way to offer our services outside of our clinic. We are now offering an online ”LifeSkills Teletherapy Program” to share our experience and our specialized approach through a live video connection.

This program is offering opportunities for parent coaching, consultation, and direct intervention with the child. Consultation is including opportunities to discuss areas of concern and problem solve solutions, discuss your child’s progress, and the therapy program or activities.  Parent coaching is an opportunity for the parent to facilitate the therapy with guidance from the therapist. Direct intervention is possible with children who can attend to the therapist on the screen and follow along with activities being presented and/or demonstrated.

While the Teletherapy Program is not a replacement for our specialized clinic-based program, it is a good match for those who do not live in our area or cannot attend our clinic for other reasons. It can also be used to supplement a clinic therapy program, or as a follow up to maintain contact with those who have completed a therapy program.

How it works!

We are now offering initial evaluations as part of the LifeSkills Telehealth Program.

The initial evaluation is the first step in the therapy process. This first appointment will be to collect information about your child so we can identify areas of concern that can be addressed by our specialized therapy approach. The evaluation process combines information that you provide on a questionnaire with objective results from standardized tests and clinical observations. This information provides us with an overview of your child’s abilities and helps to identify areas that may need further assessment. We will look at many different areas, including movement, body awareness, hand skills, balance, motor coordination and motor planning. We will look to see if these areas might be impacting your child’s daily function as it relates to social skills, behaviors, learning, etc.

After the evaluation, we will interpret the information gathered during the evaluation process. You will then attend a consultation for just you, the parent. During this interactive consultation, we will explain our assessment of your child with the intention of providing you with “a better understanding” of some of the pieces that may be underlying the difficulties your child is experiencing. At the end of the consultation, you will be provided with documents that include a summary list of the areas of concern, the evaluation results, and a plan of care that includes recommendations for treatment and goals to be addressed. These documents are not a formal written report that explains the results in detail, but rather the required initial paperwork needed to start a therapy program. If you would like a formal written report, please notify the front office and that report can be created for you.

At this time, we will discuss treatment options (such as Teletherapy, clinic-based weekly sessions, or intensive therapy options) for your child and you can decide if you want to sign up for a therapy program.

We believe that “helping each child put the pieces together” is a team effort and you, the parent, are a very important part of this team. We hope to be a part of changing your child’s life in a very positive way.

Below is some information about the Teletherapy Program and information on how to start the simple process of signing up and setting up the online format.


Benefits
  • Provides opportunities to support children and their parents outside the clinic.
  • Provides education to parents.
  • Provides more frequent and longer opportunities for collaboration between parent and therapist.
  • Gives the therapist opportunities to observe the child in the home environment and offer parents a better understanding of how they can work with their child to facilitate the therapy process.
  • Provides opportunities to directly assess and provide support for activities of daily living such as during snack time or a sibling interaction.
  • Focuses on activities that can be done outside of the clinic.
  • Provides opportunities to focus on the parent/child dynamic and promote positive interactions.
  • Reduces the client’s need for travel and may offer parents increased flexibility in scheduling.

Content
  • The program will include opportunities for the parent to ask questions and bring up topics, situations, or skills that they would like to address.
  • The parent and/or the child will engage in therapeutic activities that can be done in the home environment, including: reflex integration exercises, sensory diet activities, activities to improve fine motor or handwriting skills, activities to improve balance, strength, coordination, and posture, and opportunities to practice self-regulation techniques.
  • The parent and therapist can collaborate on how to use resources available in their home (i.e. how to provide the right sensory input for your child in a specific room, during a specific routine, with a specific toy, or during a favorite activity).
  • The therapist can give insight into how the child is responding and offer suggestions to adjust the activities for maximum therapeutic benefit.
  • When possible, the therapist may have the opportunity to observe the child and parent during daily activities such as a feeding task and provide suggestions to address difficulties that may occur during these times.
  • The therapist and parent will review the session and create a plan for the next session and what can be done at home until that time.

Requirements

Sign up Process

  • LifeSkills will send you some paperwork via email that you will need to return to us in order to start the process including a signed consent form.
  • You will then participate in an initial session that will allow for the therapist, child, and parent to become familiar with this new therapy medium. It will be an opportunity to see the space, experience the video interface, ask questions, and prepare everyone for future sessions.

Technology

  • A mobile device, preferably a lap top computer or device with a screen large enough to see from a distance.
  • Internet access.
  • Email access.
  • LifeSkills will be using a HIPAA compliant, secure teletherapy software. Once you have started to sign up process, we will provide you with the necessary information you will need in order to use this software from your home connection once you have started the sign up process.
  • You will have a Client Portal that gives you access to your appointments, clinical documentations, reports, payments and invoices.
  • This system will also allow you to communicate with your therapists and ask your questions.

Setting/Materials/Participants

  • A distraction free environment with good lighting, and without television, phone interruptions, or uninvited interruptions from siblings or pets.
  • A parent or caregiver may need to be present for the duration of the session.
  • A safe place and an activity to occupy the child while the therapist and parent are talking. This could be a corner in the room with some puzzles or books or perhaps the child can be supervised by a responsible sibling or the other parent outside of the room.
  • A space in your home that can be relatively clear to allow for your child to perform some movement activities such as rolling on an exercise ball, performing a reflex exercise such as “Starfish”, assuming a yoga pose, etc… You might be able to move some furniture to clear a space, use a play room, or even the backyard.
  • We will ask you what type of equipment you have available at home and use what you already have during the teletherapy sessions.

 

Here’s What Parents Say About LifeSkills’ Teletherapy Program…
“During a time where face-to-face therapy has not been possible, teletherapy has been a lifesaver. Liam has been able to continue making progress on his goals and stay in a state where he is capable of self-regulation, through a very hard season on all of us. He looks forward to his Tele therapy sessions and I have been so impressed with the way Adam has creatively used things we have at home to treat him and keep the session’s fun and engaging. We are very thankful for the opportunity LifeSkills offered us by providing Teletherapy.” – Danielle Knight