Where Do We Go For Therapy?

Advantages and disadvantages from the perspective of family and professionals

After the diagnosis, parents must be informed about the advantages and disadvantages of each form of therapy.

After that, each family makes the decision they consider most appropriate for the child.

Parents should consider several aspects before choosing their child’s therapy:

- the constant and available financial resources;

- the time they can allocate to therapy;

- the access to a nearby centre with experience and results;

- the child’s needs;

- the access to an interdisciplinary and professional team.

ADVANTAGES
AT HOME	IN A SPECIALIZED CENTER
The child does not need to travel to receive therapy; The family is always connected to the therapy and knows exactly what the child learns, what are the difficulties the child meets and his strengths; The child is in a familiar environment and does not make the effort to generalize the place; Communication between team and family can be done efficiently. Generalization and socialization have a greater efficiency due to the familiar environment. Privacy, nobody knows child’s situation (False); Lower costs (False) – “hidden” costs: procurement costs for materials, costs of arranging the workspace, costs of arranging the workspace.	The environment is designed and arranged especially for child’s safety and treatment needs; The child has access to multiple therapies, integrated package of services; We provide all necessary materials, including materials for parents so that generalization to take place at home as well; The diversity of materials for therapy, toys, games and awards; Ensure regular training of both specialists and family; The family environment is not affected, its privacy is not lost; The staff has certified experience and accredited professional status; Staff experience is gained due to the higher number of children with whom they work over time; Costs are similar or in some cases lower than for home therapy; Playgroups are organized so that each child will receive guided instruction and supervision; Therapy is constant; Access to auxiliary services (partnerships with kindergartens, dental offices, playgrounds); Parents and professionals have access to documentary sources; Support groups and counseling for parents.

DISADVANTAGES
AT HOME	IN A SPECIALIZED CENTER
Loss of family privacy; Training of new staff require both time and a financial investment; A family member must stay at home permanently; A parent might give up his job to constantly be at home and therapy budget shrinks because of this; Housing modifications adapted to the needs of home therapy; Continuous therapy monitoring by family; The parent regularly loses precious time for documentation and verification of information; The staff is unable to legally prove their experience; Large fluctuations in team personnel may occur; Interruptions in therapy could happen; Staff recruitment and selection are done by the family; The necessary therapy materials are procured by the family; Greater need for socialization and generalization material resources.	The absence of all things that motivate the child, which are naturally found in the familiar environment (e.g. food, toys, furniture, people); The child’s transportation to the center: travel-related difficulties: route-related self-stimulations, phobias (e.g. the subway); Costs may be higher (but there is a minimum cost of therapy conducted in the center); The time to travel may take up to 2 h / day in some cases; Unlike home, the family may have the impression is not connected in the same way with the child’s evolution; The family may find difficult to cope with the diminishing contact with the child.