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Q: WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM THE PROGRAMS OFFERED AT THE LI SPECTRUM CENTER? A: We work with people with all levels of abilities.
Q: HOW DO I KNOW WHICH PROGRAM IS RIGHT FOR MY CHILD? A: This is usually a mutual decision between our evaluation team and you, the parent. It is based on the reasons why you bring your child to us and the results of the evaluations we perform. Q: I HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT MY CHILD HAS A PROBLEM (IE. LEARNING DISABILITY, ADD, PDD, etc.) BUT I THINK THEY ARE STILL YOUNG AND WILL PROBABLY GROW OUT OF IT; IS IT OK IF I WAIT ANOTHER YEAR? A: One of the most difficult things to hear is that your child has a problem. Ultimately, what you do and when is a family decision. However, in our professional experience and in the literature, the earlier you intervene in any of these problems, the better the outcome for the child. Q: WHAT ARE YOUR HOURS OF OPERATION?
Q: IS TREATMENT COVERED BY INSURANCE? A: At this point in time, unfortunately, insurance companies do not cover these programs. It is considered educational therapy. You can, however, speak with your tax advisor about getting a tax deduction for special education programming. Q: WHAT TYPES OF SUCCESSES HAVE YOU HAD? A: Our clients have had varying levels of success. Please visit our parent testimonials page to learn more about some of our success stories. Q: HOW LONG IS THE PROGRAM? A. Our programs vary based on the individual needs of the child. Q: HOW DO THE PROGRAMS OFFERED BY YOUR CENTER DIFFER FROM TUTORING PROGRAMS SUCH AS THOSE SUPPLIED BY SYLVAN LEARNING CENTERS OR HUNTINGTON LEARNING CENTERS? A: Unlike tutoring programs that focus primarily on the delivery of school subject matter, Our programs identify potential underlying physical, neurological and cognitive issues that may hinder your child's ability to focus and learn. The physiological (physical) skill sets needed to learn are assessed and strengthened. Particular focus is placed on the student's Sensory Integration Skills (vestibular, visual and auditory processing). Sensory Integration is the organization of sensations for use by the brain. The human brain is constantly being bombarded by stimuli at a rapid rate. IE. Right now, as you read this, you are taking in many different forms of stimuli. Visual stimuli take the form of words. You are also taking in the peripheral vision of everything else on your desk. You may also have a child crying in the background and the phone ringing. You also have gravity working on your bones and muscles and the feeling of the seat on your body. And many more... These sensations need to be acted upon, organized and co-coordinated if a person is to live and learn efficiently. If these sensations can be well managed, the brain can form perceptions, then concepts, and derive meanings, and so can learn. Learning is based on both context (brain function) and content. If there is a problem with context - then all of the content in the world won't result in learning. With poor context, people would have a difficult time even processing grade 1 math taught one on one by a PhD! By improving the brain's ability to process sensory information and attend to appropriate environmental stimuli, we are improving the context of learning. Planting seeds (content programs) with poor soil is a waste of time and money. Q. WHAT IS THE THEORY BEHIND THE SENEX SENSORY TRAINING PROGRAM? A. The analogy we give that most people can relate to is this: The purpose of the muscular system is movement. When exercising, there is a lot of fancy equipment and techniques to accomplish this, but ultimately all we do is stress the muscle tissue to failure to create a stimulus for change. The exercise is the stimulus for the change, you grow and get stronger when you are home resting. Your muscular system responds to the demands and grows accordingly. The sensory systems (nervous system) work in a similar way. The purpose of the sensory system is to process sensory information to the brain and if you want it to change you have to exercise it. SenEx was created as an exercise system that will allow multi-sensory stimulation in many different combinations to stimulate the systems and allow them to change the way they work together, improve their ability to process information. This is extremely important for normal function; it has implications in developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, and stroke and brain injury. Q. I WAS TOLD THAT MY CHILD HAS MORE THAN ONE PROBLEM. HE HAS PDD and ADHD. CAN YOU HELP HIM? A. We don't treat specific labels. We look for the areas within the child's nervous system and biochemistry that are working properly and the areas that are not. Then we develop an individualized strategy to resolve these issues. Q. HOW DO YOU EVALUATE PEOPLE WITH NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS? A. Typically, you come to our office having already been diagnosed by another provider. At the Long Island Spectrum Center, we have a staff of consulting clinicians and in-house educators that use a multi-dimensional approach to the evaluation process. Because the brain controls every function of the body, all clients receive an individual comprehensive evaluation. First, we consult with the child's parents and review their history. Then we perform a comprehensive special education assessment. Finally, we perform an extensive physical examination, which gives particular focus to brain and biochemical function. Q. WHAT IF MY CHILD IS TAKING MEDICATION? A. Often, clients come in for an evaluation already taking different types of medication. Many parents choose (after consultation with the prescribing physician) to reconsider the need for medication based on the child's progress in our programs. Q. HOW OFTEN WILL I COME FOR SESSIONS? A. Each program at the Long Island Spectrum Center programs is individual and requires different amounts of time in the facility. Our goal is to "train the brain" to function differently. As with exercise for training muscles, it takes time, intensity and consistency. Typically, patients come three times per week, for a minimum of 12 weeks, but we often recommend 6 months or longer to create lasting change. Q. IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO AT HOME? A. Yes. Our goal is to modify and improve the brain's functioning over time. In addition to in-office sessions, every family is required to do "homework" - a series of repetitive assignments and exercises, which convert short-term gains into long-term permanent change. Our staff will design a series of activities that are specific to each patient. Q. WILL YOU SEND MY PEDIATRICIAN A REPORT OF MY CHILD'S EXAMINATION FINDINGS? A. We will be happy to send your doctor a report. Give us his/her name and contact information and we will keep your child's pediatrician informed of the entire process. Q. HOW DO I GET STARTED? A. The process begins with your phone call to our office. Once you set up a consultation, you either download our intake forms, or we can send them to you. Fill these out and bring them to your consultation. The consultation is typically with Dr. Gruttadauria and the child's parents. We prefer that you do not bring your child to this appointment. This discussion usually lasts 45 minutes, and gives us the opportunity to hear your child's history and current levels of performance. In addition to reviewing your intake packet, you will get an overview of what we do and a tour of our facility. The next step is to set up an assessment for your child. This takes place in two parts; one with our Special Education Director, Veronica Lleras, and the other with our Clinical Director, Dr. Michael Gruttadauria. Once the assessments are completed, our team meets to discuss our findings. Together we come up with a course of treatment and write up a recommendation in our Report of Findings (ROF). At your next appointment, we review the ROF and answer any additional questions that you might have. |
              
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CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS TO THE OFFICE 100 Manetto Hill Road, Suite 106 | Plainview, NY 11803 | 516-470-9525 |
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