Embracing Telehealth Therapy Facilitates Collaboration While Allowing Children to Reach Developmental Milestones

In March 2020, in response to COVID-19 and new social distancing guidelines, the team at Solace Pediatric Healthcare had to adjust its treatment of care model to offer pediatric telehealth therapy to all of its patients. Although it was a major shift in care, it has truly highlighted the significance of telehealth and its impact on the families we serve.

“We had been planning to launch a telehealth therapy program later in the year, so we had the framework ready, but hadn’t gone through all the steps and training. In meetings with State and industry agencies, we knew COVID-19 was approaching quickly and would greatly impact the access to care for our 4,000+ children, as well as every other child in Colorado,” adds Darcie Peacock, CEO at Solace Pediatric Healthcare.

Several of our occupational, physical and speech therapists specialize in telehealth virtual therapy sessions, providing the same level of outstanding outcomes that our families receive from in-home sessions.

Our interactive telehealth sessions are in real-time so your child and the clinician will be able to see, hear and interact during their session. Our clinicians utilize fun, interactive, age-appropriate activities to engage your child and to achieve goals in their natural environment.

Anna, speech therapist at Solace Pediatric Healthcare, has had tremendous success with her telehealth sessions. A clinician with Solace for nearly four years, she has conducted over 1,500 telehealth sessions with children ranging in age from 12 months to 12 years. In the Q&A below, Anna discusses her role with Solace and the importance of pediatric telehealth therapy.

Talk about your role as a speech therapist with Solace. What do you do for families?
As a speech therapist with Solace, my primary role is to support families in enriching and bettering the lives of their children. Oftentimes, when working in the home environment, we become our families best advocates and go-to support since we see/communicate with them so often.

As a speech therapist, I support families in understanding developmental and age appropriate speech/language and cognitive skills. I provide therapy interventions that the family is able to carry over to help improve those skills on a daily basis. My biggest priority is helping the family to feel comfortable in the process of growth.

What types of diagnoses, behaviors or skills do speech therapists work with most frequently?
As speech therapists, we work with a multitude of different diagnoses such as Autism, apraxia, phonological disorders, expressive/receptive disorders, fluency disorders and hearing loss just to name a few. Some people don’t realize speech therapists are also heavily involved in feeding disorders such as dysphasia and sensory feeding aversions.

Why is in-home or natural environment speech therapy so important for families vs. a clinic or group setting?
It’s been proven time and time again that children learn and grow best in their most natural and comfortable environment with the people who know them best — family members! I have worked in a clinic setting before where families drop off their children and pick them up when therapy is over, but the carry over of family members working on goals/skills throughout the week just isn’t there. This is one of the reasons I have enjoyed teletherapy as it allows the parent to be the most hands on, whereas I can provide the education and techniques for families to use while targeting goals.

What are the benefits of speech therapy via telehealth?
Teletherapy has so many benefits. It provides flexibility on both ends (therapist and family) in terms of scheduling and making up missed visits. It is a safe option for families who have medical concerns of people coming in and out of their house constantly. I feel the biggest benefit is allowing the family to feel more involved and hands on during therapy activities. When providing in-person therapy, I find that parents often feel they should just “leave it to the therapist” or will feel the therapist can do a better job at supporting their child than they can. Sometimes families will start therapy sessions on the floor with a therapist and then get distracted and end up walking away. Teletherapy allows me as a therapist to provide the necessary support, observe and provide feedback for families who can then use those same supports throughout the week.

Do you have a recent telehealth success story that you would like to share?
Last year, Mateo made awesome progress in speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy via telehealth therapy. Since he has so many providers, co-treats have been very helpful for scheduling and supporting each other’s goals. Mateo can now scoop a few bites of puree using his learner spoon without throwing it or mom’s hands on assist. He is also holding his new sippy and drinking up to 2.5oz of honey thick liquid by himself! Mateo is using many new signs consistently.

His favorites are “more,” “all done” and will request “mama” and “wow wow” for the dog. Mateo is now standing up on his own and has gone from a couple steps to a speed race walker! Mom has been a rockstar during telehealth visits!

What types of activities can children and parents expect during a speech therapy telehealth visit?
Whatever is accessible! I have had sessions at the park where the focus is on parents joining in on play going down the slide and swinging on swings. Sessions can be using favorite toys in the living room or even during meal time while sitting in a high chair. I encourage families to determine their child’s interests and what motivates them and we go from there!

What tips would you recommend to parents to help ensure the most out of a telehealth visit?
I would say have an open mind and feel confident that YOU are your child’s best support. The therapist is there to provide the knowledge, strategies, education and keep track of goals related to your child’s progress whereas parents are with their child on a daily/hourly basis! You know your child best. If you have any concerns, always communicate them to your therapist to make sure you are getting the best possible support! Open communication is key.

How can parents help continue the progress made during telehealth therapy visits at home?
Carry over, carry over carry over! Even if it’s just five minutes a day, implementing strategies learned and used during therapy will make a big difference. Oftentimes I find once parents start to see progress, they will start generalizing strategies more and more. If the child is in daycare/school make sure you let the providers know these strategies and supports for the best carry over possible.

The Leader in Pediatric Home Healthcare

Solace Pediatric Healthcare is the leading provider of pediatric nursing, family caregiver, occupational, physical, speech, behavior and feeding therapy services in the state of Colorado delivered in the home in-person or through a seamless interactive virtual experience. Our 400+ clinicians have provided therapy to 4,000+ children from birth to 21 years. Since 2005, we have provided over one million visits.

Our mission is to support you and your family in providing professional clinical evaluations, treatment options, resources and information so you feel empowered to make the best decision for your child and family.

How to Refer Your Child

Option 1 | I want to refer my child for an Evaluation/Therapy. If you know you would like to speak to our patient advocate to discuss scheduling an initial evaluation with a licensed pediatric therapist, simply complete and submit the Referral Form so we may contact you. Please provide as much information on the secure/encrypted form as possible as it is required to begin the process. We do accept Medicaid and most insurances.

Option 2 | I Want to Be Contacted. If you would like to speak with our patient advocate for more information prior to submitting a Referral Form, simply complete the Contact Me Form and submit.

Option 3 | If you prefer to contact us to discuss your child, please call our team. You can reach us by phone at: (Denver) 303.432.8487; (Colorado Springs) 719.623.5463; (Northern Colorado) 970.775.8476; and (Pueblo) 719.695.4535.