Assessment
Initial Assessment
An initial assessment is an important first step in determining whether you may benefit from speech therapy support, and if so, what type of support might be most appropriate.
The initial assessment provides an opportunity for us to get to know you, understand your preferences, determine goals, and build rapport.
Even if you have previously received speech therapy, it is still important to have an initial assessment so that we can understand your history and make sure we can provide the right type of support to suit your needs.
During an initial assessment session, the speech pathologist will usually:
- Discuss your reasons for seeking a speech pathology assessment
- Take a case history
- Use formal or informal assessment tools to look at your current skills
- Discuss their recommendations and determine therapy goals, if required
After the initial assessment, you can book in for speech therapy sessions, if required.
In some cases, the speech pathologist may recommend seeing another health professional, such as a paediatrician, audiologist, psychologist, or occupational therapist.
Assessment Report
Some clients might require a written report following an assessment session. Please let us know if this is the case so that we can discuss your requirements. This usually involves an additional charge, which is based on the time it takes for the speech pathologist to write the report.
Wherever possible, we aim to write our assessment reports in a way that is neurodiversity-affirming. However, in some cases when formal assessment tools are required, or to support a diagnostic process, some elements of the report may not be consistent with neurodiversity-affirming language.
Learn more about how we approach neurodiversity-affirming practice here.
Autism Assessment
Autism assessments can help provide a clearer understanding of a child’s strengths, communication profile, developmental needs, and the supports that may assist them at home, childcare or school, and in the wider community.
Our speech pathologists review your child’s developmental history and complete a comprehensive assessment of their speech, language, social communication, and play skills. This information helps identify whether your child’s presentation is consistent with autism-related communication differences and supports families in understanding the next steps.
While speech pathologists do not diagnose autism independently, they play an important role in assessing communication and social interaction skills. They can also help determine whether other communication-related conditions, such as developmental language disorder, pragmatic language difficulties, or situational mutism, may be contributing to your child’s presentation.
What does our autism assessment involve?
Each assessment is tailored to your child and family’s needs. The process may include:
- A comprehensive case history, including your child’s developmental, communication, and social history.
- An observation at childcare, kindergarten, or school to better understand your child’s communication and interaction skills in everyday settings with peers.
- Autism screening questionnaires completed by parents, carers, educators, or others who know your child well.
- An in-clinic interview and assessment completed by a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist.
Following the assessment, families receive a comprehensive report outlining their child’s communication profile, assessment findings, and recommendations for support. The assessment undertaken by the speech pathologist will contribute to the evidence supplied by your child’s paediatrician and psychologist in order to support a diagnosis. This report may also assist families when applying for supports such as the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) as well as applying for specialist support or specialist schools.
Box Hill Speech Pathology provides autism assessments for children aged 3 to 12 years. Please contact our team to learn more about autism assessments or to discuss whether this service may be suitable for your child.
At Box Hill Speech Pathology, we believe in offering a range of evidence-based treatment options for both children and adults.
Please head to our contact page for more information or call 9899 5494 to book an initial consultation.