We are happy to receive an initial enquiry for a consultation. Your enquiry may be following a referral from a GP or other professional such as Health Visitor, Speech and Language Therapist, Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist.
We are also happy to see self-referrals, but it would be advisable to involve your GP from the outset, where possible.
Please contact my secretary on 020 4540 0555 or email: drgada@theclinic.co.uk. You can send in the referral letter or any information you may have on your child at this stage.
My secretary will then liaise with me, to determine whether a ‘consultation only’ appointment or a ‘full assessment’ is required. It is not uncommon for Neurodevelopmental conditions like ASD/DCD/ADHD to be overlapping or interconnected. However, in most cases, Sri will be able to specify the kind of assessment required, i.e. ASD or ADHD or Dyspraxia etc. Sri will also be able to quote you the prices depending on the length of consultation required and the condition(s) to be assessed at this stage.
Neurodevelopmental assessments are detailed and comprehensive, so it is essential to come prepared for your appointment to help you get the most out of it. Please watch this Video to help you prepare for an appointment with a developmental paediatrician
Here are Ten Tips to help you prepare:
- The background information sheet (BIS): You will need to fill in this document with your child’s birth, family, medical and developmental history. BIS will help me develop a comprehensive picture of your child’s strengths, weaknesses, and needs.
- Based on your enquiry, we will send you specific forms for both you and your child’s nursery or school to complete. Please try to send these forms and together with BIS to my secretary before the appointment.
- Gathering all the information: Please bring your child’s latest school report, and medical information such as immunisation records or a red book if you have any, to the appointment.
- Medications: If your child is on any medications, please bring them with you.
- List your concerns: In the weeks before the appointment, write down any concerns or questions that come to your mind on a piece of paper so that I can address them for you. Also, I will be asking you at least a few dozen questions, as part of the diagnostic interview. So, it will help to have concise answers to help complete the full assessment.
- Prepare for a long appointment: Bring some food and drink for your child to the appointment. Also, having your child’s favourite toy or book will help them feel relaxed.
- Appointment details: Please check the date, time, and location of your appointment. Kindly complete any formalities regarding fees or insurance beforehand so that we can focus on you and your child on the day.
- Plan your journey: Please check the route and car parking arrangements in the days before the appointment. Doing so will help you and your child be relaxed on the day. Also, you may have time to have some coffee, after you have checked in at the reception and before being called in.
- If you feel nervous or anxious before the appointment, this is normal. Try not to worry. We are here to help and support you.
- If you have any further questions, please check the FAQs on our website. Feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.
Now relax. You are all set for an appointment with Sri on a date and time most convenient to you.
Thank you very much for your time. If you want more helpful tips on any other aspect of child development and behaviour, then you can subscribe to my newsletter.
Please come 10-15 minutes before the appointment, so that you and your child have time to relax and settle in. Please report to the reception after you arrive. Please help yourself to cup of coffee/tea/hot chocolate while you are waiting to see Sri. There are some magazines in the waiting area to keep you occupied. There is a small play area for children, which you could choose to use if you wish.
The receptionist will then inform a CYP Nurse/Healthcare assistant about your arrival. A nurse will then take measure your child’s Height and Weight. Nurse will then inform Sri about your arrival.
Sri will welcome you into his consulting room. After introductions, he will enquire your concerns and what you wish to take out of the appointment. Sri will summarise his understanding of the key issues having read all the information you sent in before the appointment. He may ask clarifying questions to get a deeper understanding of certain aspects of history or supporting information.
Sri will then carry out a full physical examination and neurodevelopmental assessment(s) ( NDA), as required to answer the reason(s) for referral. He will plot the child’s growth. He would then score/analyse and interpret the information from tests and assessments carried out. In this short video, Sri has explained the complicated subject of an NDA into ten simple and easy to read pieces.
Sri will be able to then summarise his findings to you and draw up a list of problems/diagnoses for your child based on the above. In discussion with you, he will be able to formulate a management plan and explain to you the proposed future course of action. He will also be able to signpost you to necessary sources of information, support and advice.
Sri will welcome any questions you may have and will be happy to address these for you. He will check your understanding of the future steps/course of action, before drawing the consultation to a close.
Sri will go through all your child’s reports, his handwritten clinic notes, examination findings, test results etc, to summarise a letter to you and to your GP, stating the child’s diagnosis/problem list and future management plan.
You should receive this letter by email usually within 3 working days. In most cases parents receive a copy of the clinic letter within a week. Only in exceptional and unforeseen circumstances will this be more than a week.
Once you receive this letter, please take a moment to carefully go through this. You will notice that Sri has listed in the diagnosis and management plan, everything he has discussed with you and explained to you in the clinic. Please let us know if there are any factual inaccuracies by contacting Sri’s secretary, though this is rare.
It is Sri’s practice to recommend you share his report with all the professionals and teachers involved in your child’s habilitation, so that everyone is aware of your child’s diagnosis/difficulties and the proposed management plan to address these.
Please save the clinic letter in your child’s medical folder, so that you can access/refer to it as and when required. Sri thoroughly recommends you access the sources of support in the form of websites, books, tips etc. he has listed in his clinic letter, to maximise the benefit and life chances of your child.
In this short video, Sri has detailed out the steps to be followed after Neurodevelopment assessment specifying the ten things that parents should consider, to ease your passage and accomplish their goal.
The Brain is plastic. Activity determines organisation of the brain. Hence the more you practice and comply with the recommendations given, the more progress and benefit you are likely to see in your child.
Sri would be happy to see your child for a follow up should new challenges or difficulties arise or if you have any questions or concerns at a later date. Most children with neurodevelopmental condition(s) benefit from some form of monitoring or follow up, either in NHS with your GP/Paediatrician or in Private. Cost of follow up appointments is significantly less as they are short and do not need the huge work up that is required for an assessment.