SW 644: Issues in Developmental Disabilities Intellectual Disability Discussion

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SW 644 Issues in Developmental
DisabilitiesIntellectual Disability Discussion

• Lecture Presenters
• Lara S. Head, Post Doctorate Fellow
• Psychiatry, UW-Madison Waisman Center
• Don Anderson, MSSW

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Supports Intensity Scale (SIS)

• An adaptive behavior scale
• Differs from other scales in that it focuses more
  on what an individual is able to do
• Provides more specific information about what an
  individual can do with a particular skill and the
  supports that are needed
• Used by professionals in community settings
  primarily with adolescents and adults

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Clinical Assessments

• Children with complex issues
• Availability of and access to existing records as
  first step in evaluation process
• Next step is to process information and make
  essential hypotheses understanding of childs
  intellectual functioning is key foundation
• Adaptive behavior assessment(s) may be necessary
  in addition to intellectual or cognitive
  assessment

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Clinical Assessments

• Children with complex issues
• May need to investigate medical issues
• May need to determine other environmental issues,
  i.e., family
• May need to ask more questions that deal with
  changes in the environment, i.e., a newborn
  sibling

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Clinical Assessments

• Children with complex issues
• Need to ask, How much information do I already
  have? How much information do I still need to
  know? What do I want the outcome of this
  evaluation to be?
• Example Autism need to make use of all
  available information and informants need to
  determine patterns and regressions in behavior

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• Assessment usually sought when child is very
  young, i.e., infant or toddler
• There is realization that there may be some
  developmental concerns
• Assessment may also be sought during school-age
  years as children are seen in comparison to
  larger groups of children
• Additionally, there may be a need for assessment
  when child finishes school

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• Initially, when approaching the professional
  community for assessment, parents often ask,
  What is it that I need to find out? Why do I
  need this information? Why is this happening?
  What is this called? What are we going to do
  about it?
• Similar questions can be asked for someone
  entering early adulthood

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• For children, the first avenue presented is
  usually the school district
• Evaluation of child under three is very much
  focused on developmental issues, and may be
  discipline specific
• There may be medical issues to be addressed by
  pediatrician

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• Assessments/services across school districts can
  vary based on numerous factors
• School district evaluations are free and may
  include outside evaluations
• There may be a need to examine qualifications,
  i.e., certification, of outside evaluators
• Need to communicate clearly what you want done
  and how youre going to use the information

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• Intellectual testing is often a very good
  foundation
• The long range plan is a key feature of the
  assessment
• Evaluations may be very much focused on support
  needs

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Advocacy Approaching the Professional Community
for Assessment

• Its essential for entry level case managers to
  think about purpose and need