Author: Natasha Boskic

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3.2 The "G" Professionals

Geneticist

A medical geneticist is trained in diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for patients with genetically-linked diseases. These diseases are related to problems with dominant and recessive genes (Fig. 1).

dominant genes
Figure 1.  This chart show how dominant  genes (left red, right blue) are passed to children by the parent who carries a specific trait

Practice

Geneticists use exams that find out about cells and genes, also known as cytogenic tests. Other tests used by geneticists may also include X-ray, ultrasounds, and other radiologic exams (Fig. 2), and lab-tests for biochemical testing. These tests and consultations are known as specialized genetic counseling. Based on the information gathered through these tests and other information, specialists then work with families to implement treatment or follow-up therapies known as therapeutic interventions. Medical geneticists can also use information gathered through tests to provide prevention options through prenatal diagnosis.

Radiologist_in_San_Diego_CA_2010

 Figure 2. Radiology lab

The work of medical geneticists also cover large-scale activities that help on a public health level, for example, large screening programs for newborns, for illnesses like phenylketonuria, or PKU (Fig. 3). This disease is due to an inborn error of metabolism, that is, a disease where children cannot absorb protein in foods and require a special diet for life.  Other examples where geneticists can help is for blood diseases; for example, hemoglobinopathies, for chromosome abnormalities and neural tube defects.

PKU
Figure 3. PKU
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3.2 The "F" Professionals

Family Physician and General Practitioner (GP)

Family and general physicians often provide the first point of contact for people seeking healthcare.

Family physicians are a medical doctors (MDs) who have completed a specialization in  family practice.  General practitioners (GPs) are also MD’s who have finished their basic medical training but who have not completed a specialization.

Practice

Both family physicians and GPs assess and treat a wide range of conditions, from sinus and respiratory infections to broken bones. Both family and general physicians typically have a base of regular, long-term patients. When patients require specific attention to a particular condition, or when they require treatment for a more serious conditions, family physicians refer to specialists or other healthcare facilities that can provide this specialized or intensive care.

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3.2 The "E" Professionals

Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Specialist

An ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT) is a physician trained in the medical and surgical treatment of the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. Ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT)

Practice

ENTs have special expertise in managing diseases of the ears, nose and nasal passage sinuses, larynx (voice box), oral cavity and upper pharynx (mouth and throat), as well as structures of the neck and face (Fig. 2). The well trained ENT specialist has a thorough knowledge of all of the organs and physical structures in the head and neck region. Ear nose and throat specialists are trained to handle surgeries where organs need to be removed; these may include the adenoids (Fig. 3) (known as  adenoidectomies), the tonsils (Fig. 4) (known as  tonsillectomies) as well as treatments for  nosebleeds, ear-aches, hearing loss, dizziness, hoarseness, and sinus disease.

head_neck

Figure 2. structure of the neck and face
adenoids
Figure 3. Adenoids

 

 tonsils

Figure 4. Tonsils
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3.2 The "C" Professionals

Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist

The child and adolescent psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of thinking, feeling and/or behavior that affect children, adolescents, and their families.  A child and adolescent psychiatrist offers families the advantages of a medical education, the medical traditions of professional ethics, and medical responsibility for providing comprehensive care.

Practice 

A child and adolescent psychiatrist combines knowledge of biological, psychological, and social factors in working with patients.  Initially, a comprehensive examination is performed to evaluate the current problem paying close attention to its physical, genetic, developmental, emotional, cognitive, educational, family, peer, and social components.

The child and adolescent psychiatrist arrives at a diagnosis which is shared with the patient and family.  The psychiatrist then designs a treatment plan which considers all the components and discusses these recommendations with the child or adolescent and family.

An integrated approach may involve individual, group or family psychotherapy, medication,  and/or consultation with other physicians or professionals from schools, juvenile courts, social agencies or other community organizations.

In addition, the child psychiatrist is expected to act as an advocate for the best interests of children and adolescents.  Child and adolescent psychiatrists perform consultations in a variety of settings (schools, juvenile courts, social agencies).

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3.2 The "A" Professionals

Audiologist

Audiologists help people who have hearing, balance, and related ear problems. These problems may be a result of trauma at birth, viral infections, genetic disorders, exposure to loud noise, certain medications, or aging.

Using various types of testing equipment, audiologists measure a patient’s ability to hear and distinguish between sounds (Fig. 1). They also use computers to evaluate and diagnose balance disorders.

Audiologist

 Figure 1. Audiologist measuring an ability to hear and distinguish sounds

Audiologists analyze the results of these tests, along with educational, psychological, and other medical information to make a diagnosis and determine a course of treatment.

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3.1 The "V" Professionals

The “V” Professionals

Vision Consultant

Vision consultants (Fig. 1) are trained to work with children with vision impairments and their families, on a one-on-one basis. Vision consultants make sure that children with vision impairments receive the aid and programs they need. They work with eye-doctors, teachers and principals, parents, and with orientation and mobility consultants to assist the child and family. For children ages 4 and up, the BC Ministry of Education provides information to describe visual impairments and the funding a child may get  for special needs support. In British Columbia, vision consultants work with school districts, with provincial health centres like Sunny Hill and BC Children’s Hospital, and with the Ministry of Children and Family Development (the Children’s Low Vision Project).

Figure 1. Vision consultant
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3.1 The "T" Professionals

The “T” Professionals

Therapists: Art, Play, Movement

Art Therapist

Art therapists (Fig. 1 and 2) work with children or adults with disabilities, or who have survived abuse or trauma. Their treatment helps these children heal, and it uses simple art materials. Art therapists encourage children to freely express themselves. They aim to help children to feel safe and free of threat no matter what they paint, colour or create. Art therapists work with parents and with other professionals to help the child. In British Columbia, the Vancouver Art Therapy Institute provides these services and trains art therapists.

Figure 1. Art therapy

Figure 2. Art therapy

Movement Therapist

Movement/dance therapists (Fig. 3) work with children with disabilities or with behavior or emotional challenges using different movements. These movements may be related to exercises, physical training or dances. Movement therapists draw from different movement traditions around the world. They use these movements to heal and promote physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

Figure 3. Movement/dance therapist

Play Therapist

Play therapists work with children who may be going through difficult times at home, school or within their community. Play therapy is a valued approach for children who have survived trauma. Play therapists invite children to “play out” (Fig. 4) their feelings; while adults “talk out” their feelings in adult therapy sessions. Play therapists may work in agencies that provide different community and therapy services for families. These may include Children’s Services, community agencies, psychiatric centers, children’s hospitals, schools, and women’s shelters. Play therapists may work one-on-one or within group settings, or with the child and family together.

Figure 4. Play therapy

Teacher for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Teacher for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing works in home guidance & preschool programs for deaf and hard of hearing children. Find out about specific programs and resources for children who are deaf or hard of hearing listed under General Resources.

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3.1 The "S" Professionals

The “S” Professionals

School Psychologist

School psychologists receive training to assess (see full Glossary) children who may have additional developmental or learning needs.  School psychologists work on a one-on one basis with a child to gather information about the child’s needs, challenges and gifts in their academic, adaptive, language and social and emotional skills. School psychologists support students, teachers and teaching assistants, principals and parents.  School psychologists refer to, and are part of, the School Based Team or SBT and provide their input for the students’ IEP or Individualized Educational Plan. In British Columbia, Canada, school psychologists work with groups of schools within a school district (see full Glossary).

Special Educator/Special Education Teachers

Special education teachers work with children with special needs in special education programs (Fig. 1) or classrooms within elementary and high schools. Special education teachers work on one-on-one or small groups and follow the recommendations of the Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). This means that the work they do with the children has modified from the regular school curriculum. They do so in order to meet the children’s unique educational and learning needs. Special education teachers try different ways to teach with children, including the use of materials the children can touch or listen to in order to learn to read and write. Special education teachers are part of the School Based Team (SBT) and work together with other classroom and resource teachers, principals, other school professionals and parents.

Figure 1. Special Education Program

Speech and Language Pathologist

Speech and language pathologists or SLPs (Fig. 2) work with children who have difficulties learning to communicate (for example, making sounds because they have difficulties in their speech) or with children who have difficulty understanding information even when they can hear, and when then information is spoken in the child’s native language or “mother tongue.” The role of a speech language pathologist is to identify difficulties and help with the prevention of speech, language, fluency, voice, cognitive, and other related communication disorders. SLPs use different exercises or techniques to help children learn how to make sounds and speak; these include exercises with their tongues, lips, and even with swallowing for children who have major physical or motor impairments. This is why most of the time SLPs work with other professionals as part of inter-disciplinary teams, or in private consultation and collaboration with others. SLPs may work in health units and health care centres, in school districts, or with child development centres and agencies.

Speech and language
Figure 2. Speech and language pathologist

School Support Teacher

The school support teacher (Fig. 3) or educational assistant works with children with additional needs. He or she works in collaboration with, and under the supervision of,  classroom  and resource teachers. Working with classroom and resource teachers, school support teachers implement the specific strategies and techniques in the child’s Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). School support workers may work in-class, with the targeted child or children as part of the larger classroom, or in a one-on-one, pull-out setting.

Figure 3. School support teacher

Social Worker

Social workers (Fig. 4) are trained to work with children and families who need support in urgent or critical situations when families cannot help themselves. Examples of these situations may include family crises where violence, neglect or any type of abuse may be happening; the loss of a job and the risk of losing a home when there is no money to pay the rent or no food to bring to the table; having a child with disabilities or with mental health needs and needing additional support, and other similar situations. Social workers work under government legislation. They may act as protectors of children’s or adult’s rights, or as advocates in front of the law, and may have to testify in court (Fig. 5 and 6). They work in homes, in family centres, in hospitals, and in major health and development support centres. They take part in major decisions around children and families, and work as part of multi- or inter-disciplinary teams. They may work with, and receive additional support from, social work assistants when working in government or large health or family agencies.

Figure 4. Social worker

Figure 5. Testifying in court

Figure 6. Court

Supported Child Development Consultant

Supported child development consultants (Fig. 7) work with children ages 3 – 19 years with special or additional needs.  Consultants work with families at home, and also with teachers and child care providers working in preschool, daycare and out-of-school care programs. While working with children, their teachers, or other service providers, consultants help come up with individual service plans for children that reflect the choices and priorities of their families. At the same time, they make sure the centres the child attends are inclusive and that they address the child’s individual needs. Working on a one-on-one basis, the work of a supported child development consultant aims to enable parents to that they take charge of major decisions on behalf of their children and themselves. Supported child development consultants work under the supervision of a program coordinator. The program coordinator plans and directs the Supported Child Development Program (SCDP). The Office of the Provincial Advisor provided guidance, training and direction for all SCD and ASCDP programs in the province until December of 2009, when the MCFD terminated this office.

Figure 7. Child development consultant
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3.1 The "R" Professionals

The “R” Professionals

Resource Teachers/Learning Assistance Teachers

 

Resource or Learning Assistance (LAC) Teachers work with children with developmental delays or with learning disabilities in one-to-one or small group settings.  These teachers have received special training to work with children with additional needs in Special Education.

LAC teachers play an active role in providing services to children with additional needs. LAC teachers work use the child’s Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) to develop a program that suits the child’s needs. They do this work in collaboration with parents, the classroom teacher, others in the school-based team, for example, the school psychologist, and other professionals in the school and community. These include the following: special needs teacher/educator, special needs assistants, counselors, speech language pathologists/therapists (SLP), and school administrators, including the principal.

Resource or LAC teachers collaborate with parents and other professionals. When children need specialized services, they assist with the referral process, for example, to physiotherapy or to pediatric developmental assessments. They also work closely with teachers and the School Based Team (SBT) to plan, organize and access support services for students with special needs.

Resource teachers provide the major link with other support services available at the district (see full Glossary) level. Students who have severe disabilities usually require access to more specialized programs and services. Resource teachers may work in a “pull-out model” when they take children out of their regular classroom for one-to-one or small group support.

They may also work in a “resource model” in schools where they combine learning assistance with other special education services. This means that one resource teacher works with a number of classroom teachers to provide support for all students in their classroom. For example, students in the high and low incidence (see full Glossary) groups; those who have mild learning difficulties; those who may need gifted support or enrichment; and in some cases, those who are learning English as a second language.

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3.1 The "O" Professionals

The “O” Professionals

Orientation/Mobility Specialist

Orientation and mobility training (O & M) (Fig. 1) helps a blind or visually impaired child know where he or she is in space and where he or she wants to go (orientation). It also helps the child to be able to carry out a plan to get there (mobility). Orientation and mobility skills work best if started during the first year of life or during the preschool years. The skills include basic body awareness and movement exercises, including storytelling activities, as shown in this image. This training needs to continue until children grow older. This way, they will become adults with skills that allow them to move around their community, and get everywhere they need to go efficiently, effectively, and safely. In British Columbia, Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children provides support for children with visual impairments and their families.

Figure 1. Orientation mobility specialist

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