Early Intervention
Early Intervention is the provision of educational (special instruction) and/or therapeutic (speech/language/feeding therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, social work, psychological) services to children birth to age 3, who have a suspected or confirmed delay in a developmental area.
Children with any type of developmental lag for their age (not speaking words; crawling but not walking) may receive services if they are found eligible. Early Intervention evaluations can identify infants and toddlers with developmental concerns. A variety of educational and therapeutic services are then available. These services, provided at a very young age, help children reach their optimum level of performance. LIIDP also provides behavioral intervention to help parents in managing challenging behaviors.
If you have a question or concern about how your young child is developing, please do not hesitate to contact us—our professionals will gladly answer any questions you may have. Please be assured that all conversations are kept strictly confidential. You may contact Lenore K. Stamm, Executive Director at (516) 546-2333, (631) 300-2333, or via email at lstamm@liidp.org.
LIIDP’s early intervention services can include but are not limited to:
- Developmental Evaluations
- ABA Services
- Nutrition Services
- Occupational Therapy
- Physical Therapy
- Psychological Services
- Service Coordination
- Special Instruction
- Speech/Language/Feeding Therapy
- Social Work Services
- Support Services
- Vision Services
Bilingual services are available.
Early Intervention Developmental Evaluations (Birth-3 Years Old)
A process used to determine if a child meets the eligibility standards for early intervention. This determination assesses five domains: cognitive (learning), motor (fine/gross), communication, social/emotional, and adaptive (self-help) skills.
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Specialists
The ABA Specialist uses a systematic behavioral approach in treating autistic children. ABA refers to a style of teaching that uses a series of trials to shape a desired behavior or response. Skills are broken down to their simplest components and then taught to the child through a system of reinforcement. Prompts are given as needed when a child is learning a skill or refuses to comply. As the child begins to master a skill, the prompts are gradually faded until the child can do the skill independently. Each trial functions like a building block, and together these building blocks provide the foundation for learning. The program is very positive and the child is set up for success by starting out with easier trials, reinforced, then moved on to more difficult tasks. The program essentially teaches autistic children to “learn how to learn.”
Nutrition Services
A Registered Dietitian conducts individual assessments in nutritional history and dietary intake. The Registered Dietitian also develops and monitors appropriate plans to address the nutritional needs of children.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy supports the development of fine motor skills, eye-hand coordination, sensory, motor and postural development, and self-feeding/dressing skills.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy services help children develop large muscle skills needed for crawling, walking and climbing. These services also prevent or lessen movement difficulties and related functional problems, with a goal of building endurance for the child and to help normalize body tone and body movement.
* Both the occupational therapists and physical therapists strive to educate parents or caregivers, and work with other team members on how to modify treatment or positioning according to the child’s needs or technical devices.
Psychological Services
A psychologist administers and interprets psychological tests and provides information about a child’s behavior learning style. In addition, the psychologist provides services including counseling, consultation, parent training, and education programs. A psychologist helps parents to encourage age-appropriate and socially appropriate behaviors, acts as a resource for other team members, and evaluates the developmental strengths and needs of the children enrolled in the program.
Service Coordination (early intervention only)
At a child’s Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meeting, a family selects an ongoing service coordinator. This may be the initial service coordinator assigned by the Department of Health, or it may be an individual available to serve as ongoing service coordinator from LIIDP. The person selected is responsible for assisting in all aspects of planning and coordinating a child’s services, implementing IFSP goals, making changes in a child’s IFSP, and if necessary, assisting with transition plans.
Special Instruction
Special Instruction advances learning, play and social interaction skills. This can include designing of learning environments and activities that promote the child’s development, and providing families with information, skills and support to enhance the child’s development. A special education teacher assesses your child’s functional abilities and learning style. Individualized goals address both child and family needs. Behavioral intervention helps parents in managing challenging behavior.
Speech-Language-Feeding Therapy
Speech-language-feeding therapy improves the understanding of and use of language, and /or assists with feeding problems. The speech-language pathologist helps your child with receptive and expressive language abilities, and oral-motor/feeding skills. The development of oral-motor/feeding skills is necessary to promote active movements of the lips, tongue and jaw. Receptive language refers to the understanding of language while expressive language refers to the use of speech or sign language.
Social Work Services
Social work services provide information, emotional support and assistance for family members in accessing community resources. At times, the social worker helps to coordinate communication between parents and staff. In addition, the social worker empowers family members to advocate for outside services including respite, psychotherapy, and financial entitlements. The social worker also provides family counseling as it relates to having a child with a developmental concern.
Support Services
Support services include the following:
- Developmental Groups for children provide structured learning activities and teach pro-social skills within a group format.
- Family/Caregiver Support Groups provide support, education and guidance to families with regard to each child’s unique developmental needs. Through a group setting, these provide information and emotional support to parents/caregivers who are dealing with concerns regarding their children, services they receive and/or resources available to them.
- Family Training includes services provided by qualified personnel to assist a family in understanding the special needs of the child and in promoting the child’s self-development. It also provides parents with the skills to achieve goals for their children.
Vision Services
A certified Teacher of the Blind and Partially Sighted provides these services, which include identification of children with visual disorders or delays, and services and trainings to those children.
The Early Intervention Program (EIP) is for children less than three years of age. This program is a public program funded by the New York State Department of Health and the Nassau County and Suffolk County Departments of Health (the municipality). If a child is found eligible for the EIP, all services are identified in collaboration with the family and must be authorized by the municipality. Eligibility for the EIP can be determined only by NYS approved evaluators under contract with the municipality. All services under the EIP are provided at no out-of-pocket cost to families, but health insurance may be accessed. The municipality will arrange for service providers to deliver services authorized by the municipality. For services provided in a community setting that requires a fee, the parent is then responsible for paying those fees. Long Island Infant Developmental Program is an approved provider of early intervention services and is under contract with the municipality to deliver services. To access the EIP, children must be referred either to the municipality at (516) 227-8661 or (631) 853-3100.
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