SPEECH THERAPY FAQ

Speech-language pathology services in Ontario are not covered by OHIP but financing and other funding sources are available. Please click here for more information.

FINANCING OPTION:

1. Medicard
Speech therapy programs are covered by most private and corporate insurance plans. If you do not have these extended benefits, or if speech therapy is not covered under your plan, we offer a financing solution. The Speech Therapy Centres of Canada works closely with Medicard to offer flexible financing to meet your needs. Medicard makes applying for financing easy with a fixed monthly payment schedule, ranging from six months to five years.

Contact us today and ask us how we can help.

FUNDING OPTIONS:

Jennifer Ashleigh Children’s Charity
Eligibility: A child must be 18 years of age or younger and a permanent resident of Ontario. Families must have a total gross income of $65,000 or less/year. Proof of income is required.

To Apply: For more information and to download an application form visit: http://jenash.org/get-help-now/application/
Contact: (905) 852-1799

During the Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) assessment, testing will take place and the parent/caregiver will be interviewed.

Depending on the communication issue, the areas that may be assessed include:

• How your child communicates (pronunciation, voice, fluency)
• Language expression (what they say – vocabulary, grammar, sentence structure)
• Language comprehension (what they understand)
• Play and social communication skills (how they communicate – body language, eye contact, greetings etc.)
• For older children, SLP’s may also assess reading and writing skills.

Parent Interview includes:

• A review of the family questionnaire (it is important to get to know more about each child)
• What are the concerns with regards to your child
• A chance for the parent/caregiver to create a more complete picture of your child’s issues

As parents/caregivers, your impressions and opinions about your child’s communication issues are a very important part of the whole assessment process.

Testing

For children under 3.5 years old:

• Your child will be assessed while taking part in play-based activities. These activities will be fun for your child and are usually things that can be done on the floor or a tabletop. The parent/caregiver may be invited to join the SLP and your child in these activities. The SLP will determine whether formal (more structured) and/or informal testing is required.

For older children:

• An older child’s assessment is more structured. Older children can be asked to answer some questions (both verbally and non-verbally – pointing), follow a set of directions, or copy communication made by the SLP.

Following the Assessment:

• After the assessment is completed, you will be given an overview of your child’s speech and language skills and recommendations for therapy. This may be given at the time of the assessment or several days later, as the SLP may require some time to gather the information in order to develop goals and a speech therapy treatment plan.

It is best to review guidelines from various reputable sources such as the Canadian Paediatric Society where there is information for parents from Canada’s paediatricians. See: www.cps.ca 

They state that “for children under 2 years old, screen time is not recommended” and “for children 2 to 5 years old, limit routine or regular screen time to less than 1 hour per day”.

They further add that “very often screen time is a lost opportunity for your child to learn in real time …” They discuss several risks for increased screen time and offer wonderful suggestions that can help reduce screen time opportunities for language and literacy development.

There are some great apps to promote language development when used in a limited way. But the joy of face-to-face communication, reading aloud and together and having fun with communication is best for your child. Please see our website, and social media platforms for many easy, everyday, and enjoyable tips to promote communication.

No. There are numerous causes of speech delay. Most commonly, we see children that are “late talkers”. That means they may not be following typical speech and language milestones for their age.

While a speech-language pathologist/speech therapist cannot make a diagnosis of autism, we are experienced in identifying red flags for autism and then making the appropriate recommendations to parents about next steps.

The quality of your communication 

• Slower pace ( not slow)
• Use gestures 
• Use an interesting voice

The quality of your communication

• Amount of speech – find a balance – not too much or too little
• Use a variety of words – nouns, verbs, adjectives etc.
• Lots of repetition

Enjoy being playful while communicating with your baby

There are many reasons for this. Below are just two.

• When children hear their favourite stories over and over again, they hear familiar words and see what they look like in print. This helps with reading and writing development because they make connections between what they see and what they hear.
• Another reason is that when they see and hear new words (vocabulary) their knowledge of new vocabulary and words grows. This will help with listening and reading comprehension (understanding).

There are so many tips and activities that promote speech and language development.

Some general tips include: 

• Make talking fun! Communicate while playing and singing songs
• Sing songs with repetitive phrases
• Read daily to/with your child 
• Create a print rich environment (books, letters on the fridge)
• Show interest in what your child says even if it is difficult to understand e.g., good eye contact, nodding your head, try repeating what they are saying
• Repetition is important – children enjoy hearing the same stories and songs often. Introduce new books and songs in between periods of repetition.

If you feel your child is not reaching his milestones, contact Speech Therapy Centres of Canada.

Language is an important component of learning at school. Vocabulary and language are tools for thinking and learning about the world. Successful communication is directly linked to success in reading, writing, making decisions.

This depends on several factors. Firstly, the assessment and goals of the client are important factors to consider. Secondly, the severity and type of communication disorder is another very important consideration.  After the initial assessment, the speech-language pathologist/speech therapist will make recommendations for frequency based on what is best for the client. Based on the speech therapist’s recommendations, the client and or their family will determine what works best for them. 

Individual therapy sessions are provided one-on-one, and group therapy is provided in small groups. We provide in-person, virtual, and hybrid (switching between in-person and virtual) therapy models to provide clients with flexibility and continuity of care.  Consistent therapy on a regular basis is the best approach for reaching goals. The benefit of the hybrid model is if you find there is a period where you or family member cannot come in person it is easy to switch to virtual therapy.

If the original assessment was conducted recently, we can often use the goals written by the S-LP in the assessment report. There are, however, some circumstances when another assessment is necessary.

For example, if the original assessment is outdated, a second assessment will be recommended. This is particularly true for very young children, whose development changes rapidly. 

We will also recommend another assessment to perform more testing if our speech therapist feels she/he does not have enough information from the original assessment to provide adequate therapy.

An accurate and up-to-date baseline assessment is vital for goal setting for any client.