Realizing that your child is struggling can be overwhelming and scary. Here is a quick guide to some of the professionals that can help:
Pediatricians
This is generally the person with whom your journey starts. Your pediatrician can help to make sure a medical condition is not responsible for the concern. They can also help to assess for vision and hearing problems, as well as determine if your child is appropriately meeting their developmental milestones.
Developmental Pediatrician
This is a physician who specializes in developmental delays and learning disabilities. Their focus is on treatment planning and medication management, but they do not generally provide any therapy.
Developmental Neuropsychologist
These are licensed psychologists who focus on diagnosis of developmental delays and conditions. They are generally unable to provide medical diagnoses, but often may help detect signs that further assessment by a medical doctor is needed.
Child Psychologist
This is a psychologist who focuses on the behavioral and emotional needs of children. They generally have experience in both evaluation and therapy, though their assessment background may be more rooted in emotional symptoms as compared to developmental concerns.
Occupational Therapist
These professionals examine and address motor and sensory processing concerns.
Speech and Language Therapist
As the name suggests, these professionals assess and treat speech and language abilities.
Special Education Teacher/Learning Specialist
These are teachers who are trained to work with students with developmental disabilities. They can assess reading, writing, and math skills, but are unable to conduct testing in a number of other domains (e.g., motor skills, speech, etc.) or offer a formal diagnosis.
Child Psychiatrist
These professionals can evaluate behavioral, emotional, and attention based concerns. They prescribe medication to address these concerns.
Pediatric Neurologist
This is a physician who has specialized training in the central and periphery nervous system. Their focus is on the assessment of neurological concerns.
While this list is not exhaustive, knowing who some of the professionals are that can provide help is critical to assisting your child.
Reference:
McEvoy, R.E., Gangwish, K., & Jones, M. (2016). Child decoded: Unlocking complex issues in your child’s behavior, learning and attention. Louisville, CO: L.E.A.R.N., LLC.