Hi,
I was wondering if anyone had a recommendation as to where we can go to have my 3 1/2 year old son evaluated for an autism spectrum disorder. If you can provide any details on what the eval was like as well and how long it took to get the appointment, that would be great as well.
Thank you!
I don't have a child with autism but I work for a lab that does all the testing for doctors who treat autism. I would recommend
Pfeiffer Treatment Center
http://www.hriptc.org/index.php
Anju Usman, M.D.
True Health Medical Center
603 E. Diehl Rd., # 135
Naperville, IL 60563
ph: ###-###-####
fax: ###-###-####
Call the health dept for the county that you live in and just have an early childhood eval. done. They will screen for everything at once. If it is then determined that you need further testing you can be referred to your local school. If he is on the spectrum you are entitled to services through your local school dist. I am a special ed teacher with early childhood cert. You will be able to get services though the local school/county free of charge.
My son was Eval'd at Little Friends in Naperville. They were wonderful. Not sure how long it took to get an appointment but it took 4 trips to see all the differents specialists. The cost was 2,500.00 which insurance does not cover it is all out of pocket (this was probably 3-4 years ago). Hope this helps.
Hi S....Before you pay alot of money...My doctor told me about a state funded test! We didn't end up having to get my son tested but I would try and look it up on the Internet. My sons doctor is out of LaGrange Illinois..So it had to be in Illinois Testing service. I would also look up Jenny McCarthy...She is a big activist on Autism! Good Luck!
I'm pretty sure you can have that done at Little Friends in Naperville. My nephew was diagnosed there about 7 years ago.
Good luck!
Start by making the doctor appointment (it can take several months to get in) and then get the evaluation by the school district. Either way, they both need to get done. The school district will provide services based on their findings but you should also have a medical dx in your file.
You can contact any developmental pediatrician (there are 2 that work out of Alexian Brothers) or a pediatric psych. We go to Dr. Tim Wahlberg at the Prarie Clinic in Geneva. He diagnosed my son an also offers social skills therapy groups.
You can also contact Easter Seals in Villa Park or Little Friends in Naperville (expensive and NOT usually covered by insurance.
Good Luck!
Since your child is over 3 years you have to go to the school district to get therapies. If you want a medical diagnostic evaluation you will have to do that through a hospital that does these and most of them are in the city. You may have to pay out of pocket for a medical diagnostic evaluation. I am not sure if insurance will cover some or not. But if you are more worried about getting help than a specific diagnosis start at the school as you will end up there anyway. Your child will have to be evaluated separately by the school and they will give recommendations and create an IEP. Little Friends in Naperville does offer diagnostic services and therapy but if your insurance doesn't cover it it can be expensive. If you had started this process before age 3 you could have gone to the state's Early Intervention Program and they would have organized everything for you once your child hit age 3 you would be prepared for the school district evals. Good Luck! N. J
You can have a screening done via your school district or even Easter Seals, and they can give you an opinion and recommendation of therapies that might help your son. However, you will NOT be given a medical diagnosis.
If you wish to have medical evaluation and diagnosis, you will need to find a Pediatrician who specializes in these types of diagnoses. Of course, these evaluations are all play-based, so they are non-invasive.
Helping Hands in Countryside offers services for children with austism. I am not sure if they do evaluations but if they don't I am sure that they would have resources for places that offer testing.
DuPage Easter Seals in Villa Park also offers services for children with austism and they may be able to point you in the right direction.
Helping Hands 9649 West 55th Street, Countryside, IL 60525 ###-###-#### phone
Easter Seals DuPage 830 South Addison Street Villa Park, IL 60181-2880 ###-###-####
Without a doubt: Easter Seals DuPage in Villa Park: ###-###-####; www.eastersealsdfvr.org.
