His daughter has autism and is used to having a full-time paraprofessional at school as well as services including Speech and Occupational Therapy. Her mother is quarantined, sick with COVID-19, and this teenager’s special education services disappeared overnight. What is her family to do?
This is a dilemma facing many families. As families not suffering from COVID-19 and families who have typically developing children struggle to manage work, teaching, moderating online school etc., some families have an even more impossible task in front of them. Special Education services, protected by Individualized Education Programs or IEPs, seem to be on hold. This is not okay but seems to be another side effect of the pandemic.
Virtual psychological services, while not a total panacea, can help some families during this challenging time.
We at CLEAR Child are sharing this info to let parents and caregivers know that we see you. We want to raise awareness so others see you too. From our years of clinical practice and school psychology service, we understand your suffering, and we don’t want you to feel forgotten.
CLEAR is currently working with clinicians to increase the availability and accessibility of telehealth options for behavioral health, and we encourage providers offering special education services to continue to support families in this challenging time.
Our parent platform provides support and resources for parents, and we’ll be launching soon. Visit our website to learn more, and use the contact us form to get updates.
