Posted by
poko
18 yrs ago
Hello. Our 4.5 yr old boy(his daddy is Swiss and I'm American) was told to get speech therapy at the kindergarten. His teacher told us that he's doing fine, he's more of a smart kid in the class but his speech is a bit delayed, but said since he was born prematurely, it may take a while but we don't have to concern too much about it. BUT the dean of the kindergarten told us to get the therapy as soon as possible. We were confused but if that can help our little boy we don't mind consulting the therapist. What may be the fee for the therapy?(we are not rich!) We don't have any idea how much it may cost since none of the people we know have gone for therapy... (we are not getting the therapy from the HK government, by the way.) It would be nice if you can give us some idea that "this much may cost" for us. Thank you.
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Can't help you on prices - but here is a list of a few people who may be able to help you in HK. I would call and just ask.
http://seoul.asiaxpat.com/forums/momsdads/threads/89757.asp
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Kylie Platt is a Speech Therapist why not give her a call she may be able to offer some suggestions - 9757 3204.
Lynne - 2849 0328
Matilda International Hospital
Hong Kong
http://www.matilda.org
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poko
18 yrs ago
Oh my God! That's way too expensive! I wonder what would be the consequence if we say "NO" to the dean and the principle... They sounded as if "if you don't do this..." kind of attitude. We actually got freaked out... If in States, we can go for legal issue (we were told that preterms are slow in speech especially if they are boys... we can wait till their brain clicks since they are still under developement) but since we are in HK, we don't know who we can consult with... any advice? We just fear that if we turn the offer?! down, our little one will be kicked out of school!
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kar
18 yrs ago
My son has been in speech therapy for over a year. We've used two different therapist (one left HK so we had to switch). 30 minutes of therapy costs approx. $500. (I think the first one was $480 and his current one is $500). Your son is a bit older than mine...perhaps you're looking at longer sessions which would cost more.
As for Kylie Platt, I don't think she's accepting any new patients. She wasn't before the summer when I spoke with her. She's pregnant with her second child which I believe is due sometime soon.
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You may be able to claim the therapy on your insurance if you get a referral from you GP........
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poko
18 yrs ago
My son's problem is... he understands Swiss-German and English BUT he just cannot talk. He sometimes do say some sentences quite fluently (which we overjoy and ask him to repeat and he just... talk to us in his usual Alien language...) at home. Since he cannot talk and communicate (express his feeling and express what he wants to tell/do) he gets very frustrated and throw out the tantrum (lying on the floor crying and try to run out of the classroom). We have no idea why but he just cannot talk... We have checked his hearing and was alright... We were told by the doctors and nurses that we may have to be patient and be ready mentally that his speech may delay since he was born preterm/premature (when he was born, his size was the size of my palm! I broke into tears when we saw him in the box at NICU when he was born).
I'm so tired...
Thank you Karen, kar, and GlanAber for your information. I don't know how to thank you... Just pray for me since we have to see the BOSS (the dean, principle and the therapist) early next week...
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Korean International School does have a school for some students who need extra attention - it's called "springboard" if I remember correctly. I'm not sure if this is what would be ideal for poko.
Costs aside, the first step is to try and see if there is something to be done to ameliorate the problem. If his inability to articulate is causing a whole other series of chain reactions, then at least consulting with a speech therapist may be worth it. (one time to see if he can help.)
However, he may just be delayed because of his premature birth. My gut instinct from reading about your case- it's not simply going to be solved by a speech therapist.
I remember reading another post about this - there is some speech therapy available through the public hospital system. It would most likely be considerably cheaper - but I'm not sure about the ease of getting in or any other details.
I did find a website by doing a quick search - here is a listing I hope you find helpful.
http://www.speechtherapy.org.hk/newastweb/service.html
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kar
18 yrs ago
Have you heard of Childhood Apraxia of Speech? (I am not suggesting that your son is apraxic, but it is one condition where children's receptive speech, what they understand, is typical and their expressive speech, what they can say, is at a much lower level.) My son never received a diagnosis of apraxia but his speech therapist said he had "elements" of this disorder.
Have a look at this website for more info:
http://www.apraxia-kids.org/
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