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RISP Frequently Asked Questions
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What are RISP early intervention services?
How can early services help your child's development?
Who would benefit from RISP services?
How will RISP staff work with your family?
Can RISP work with my day care provider?
Who can refer a child to this program?
Where are RISP services located?
Who pays for the program?
What do parents and families have to say about RISP
services?
Current Program Report for the Rural Infant Services
Program (PDF)
What are RISP early intervention services?
Once RISP gets a referral, your child receives one or more of the
following services, as needed, based on his or her individualized
plan. Note that every child may not need all of these services.
- Developmental screening
- Assessment/Evaluation
- Physical therapy
- Occupational therapy
- Speech therapy
- Developmental therapy (Infant education)
- Service coordination (Case management)
- Consultation in specialty areas and for children with unique needs
- Family support activities and links to other community services
- Special training events
- Lending library of materials and equipment
How can early services help your child's development?
Many children seem to learn everyday skills easily, including
crawling, walking, talking, playing, and eating. Some children,
however, need special help to learn these skills, and the RISP staff
can help parents give their children that extra help. Working with
children early in their lives is the best way to help reduce
developmental delays and can sometimes prevent developmental
problems. For young children with special needs, early
intervention services are a very worthwhile investment in the
future, offering many benefits as the child gets older.
Who would benefit from RISP services?
We help children from birth to three years old, including those
born prematurely or with a medical problem that may cause
developmental delays. We also help children who have a disability
or who are having problems learning to walk, talk, play, eat, or
get along with others.
All children will grow and learn - some quickly, some more slowly. Their
families are central to fostering their development.
How will RISP staff work with your family?
Our services aim to help families address areas of concern about
their children. Each time we visit, we share information about how
parents can help their child. We depend on parents to let us know
how their child is doing and what is working best for both parent
and child.
Can RISP work with my day care provider?
Since a child in day care typically responds best to familiar people
in any setting, it would be most helpful for a day care provider to
be actively involved in the RISP visits. This way, RISP staff and
the child's care provider can work together to address the family's
concerns, as well as any issues that have been noted in the day
care setting. RISP visits are also a good time to try out different
suggestions and to find out what works best for the child.
Childcare is busy enough, so RISP staff members do not want to
add to it by asking providers to create "therapy" time each day.
Instead, RISP staff will show how to adapt some of the existing
routines and activities using materials that are already in the day
care setting to help encourage child development. Before
beginning services in the day care setting, RISP staff will ask to
meet with the care provider to make sure that our services will be
helpful and feasible.
Who can refer a child to this program?
Our referrals generally come from doctors, families, and from
many agencies and programs in the community that work closely
with us, such as hospitals, public health, home health agencies,
public schools, social services, child care, and other public and
private agencies interested in young children. Anyone who refers a
child to RISP should obtain parental permission before making a
referral.
Where are RISP services located?
Young children learn best in their "natural environment," which is
usually in their home or day care setting. RISP staff usually visits a
child at home, and can also provide some services in the day care
setting, if the parent and childcare provider are interested.
Who pays for the program?
RISP receives funding from a variety of sources, including state
and local dollars through the Community Services Board. RISP
also receives funding from other state and local agencies, civic
groups, individuals, and organizations.
Additional funding comes from Part C of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), so there is never a charge to a
family for some services, such as a child's developmental
screening, evaluation, plan development, or service coordination.
RISP is licensed as an outpatient rehabilitation program and
charges a fee for direct physical therapy, occupational therapy,
and speech therapy. Most health insurance will cover part or all of
the cost of these services.
If the cost of RISP services would be a hardship to any family, our
agency can use a statewide sliding fee scale to reduce the charges
to the family based on its income and need. No family is ever
denied services because of inability to pay.
What do parents and families have to say about RISP
services?
Statistics are important, but they do not tell the whole story. They
cannot measure the impact of a young child achieving a goal that
his or her family did not even dare to dream would be possible: a
toddler with cerebral palsy taking her first steps, a child with hearing impairment
using sign language for the first time, or the smile
of a baby who is blind when he recognizes his grandmother's face by
touch. In addition to identifying specific goals for each child and
measuring progress toward those goals, RISP continues to
measure parent satisfaction with program components. Here is the
impact that some families have told us about:
"Our service coordinator was superb! She always took time to
hear our concerns and sent us articles that would be helpful. She
turned out to be a great friend and a valuable source of
information."
"We were given lots of helpful information each week. We are very
grateful!"
"With [my son's] hypertonia I thought my goals for him would be
difficult to achieve, but everyone was and still is optimistic, and he
has come a long way. He's moving his head a lot with a lot of
control, he's playing with toys, he recognizes his sister, myself,
and his dad. He loves to laugh. He's responding really well. He
also knows when someone's coming to see him and I believe he
loves them too."
"RISP was wonderful in helping my grandson with his speech -
[service coordinator] did a great job! She helped us through
everything one needed. I am very pleased with all your staff. We
were given all services needed and the workers were fantastic!"
"I wanted to mention the extras that they do. My two girls are
never left out when they come. Someone always has a toy or
something for them to play with. And they include them in [my
son's] therapy and always have a kind word for my kids, and I
love the way they include them. But not only are they kind to my
kids but to me as well, they are always asking me how I'm doing,
if I'm taking care of myself and all, and it makes me feel special.
When they show me a certain exercise to do with [my son] and I
get it right, I feel so proud."
"Having the visits at home let our daughter be more comfortable
so she could participate fully in the therapy."
"I was very scared when RISP first came to my home. Not only
was my daughter my first child but she was severely handicapped.
RISP helped me through my fears. RISP was very helpful finding
the most appropriate equipment for my child when needed. Also
with respite care they were very helpful, finding individuals who
were interested in helping our family."
"They helped me understand my child's conditions and helped me
to take care of him better with a better understanding."
"The staff always showed me what stretches, sounds, and
activities would benefit my child most. They even helped suggest
toys that would help him and make the exercises and different
tasks easier. I participated in all of the home visits conducted by
the RISP staff and I learned a lot from them."
"My son loved working with [speech therapist and infant
educator]. He finally learned to talk and now he talks about
everything. As far as I'm concerned, they worked miracles!"
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