Helpful Information
Frequently Asked Questions
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Delayed care can lead to a wider skill gap, potential secondary issues like compensatory behaviors, increased frustration, and negative impact to a child’s self esteem. We recommend you seek an evaluation as soon as you have concerns. We do not recommend a “wait and see” approach.
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Each patient is unique and deserves a therapy plan that is individualized to their needs, not a cookie-cutter approach. Many of our patients come to therapy once or twice per week. Each OT or PT session is 53 minutes long, and each Speech session is 30 minutes long, including time to consult with parents. Most plans of care are completed in 6 - 30 months, and we will continue seeing a patient for as long as it's clinically appropriate and wanted by the family. Our initial evaluation reports are written for a 12-month plan with progress updates every 90 days.
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Our play-based approach maximizes a child's engagement and, therefore, learning and growth. The best sessions often look like "just" play, but there is always an underlying skill or developmental area your child's therapist is targeting and embedding. Ask your child's therapist if you want to know more about the "why" behind a therapy activity.
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You are welcome in your child's therapy session. You are also welcome to use the time as a self-care break or to run errands. If you do leave the clinic, you must return ten minutes prior to the end of your child's therapy session.
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Definitely. Early Intervention and school services focus on immediate needs in the educational environment. We provide more intensive treatment and build foundation skills that a child will use for their lifetime. Both settings are important and can complement one another.
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We'd be honored to connect and collaborate with other members of your child's care team, at your request.
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We prefer in-person services in our fully equipped treatment spaces. However, if travel to a clinic would be difficult, we are often able to provide teletherapy services following an initial evaluation in person. Teletherapy works best when a parent is able to fully engage in facilitating therapeutic activities as directed by the therapist. We love to use occasional teletherapy services to help with the transfer of therapy activities to the home program.
Billing & Insurance
We accept the following insurance plans:
Blue Cross Blue Shield
HealthPartners
Cigna
Aetna
Medica
UCare
America's PPO/HealthEZ
UnitedHealthcare/UMR/Surest
TRICARE/CHAMPVA
Medicaid/MA/MHCP
Important Insurance Note:
Most insurance plans require patient cost-sharing, such as a deductible, copayment, or coinsurance, even for "covered" services. We will confirm whether we are an in-network provider with your insurance plan. You can contact your insurer for information about your benefits. Patient responsibility (the amount your insurance determines that you owe) is invoiced once a month after the claims process.
Children’s Theraplay Policies
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Consistent attendance at therapy sessions strongly correlates with a faster rate of progress toward therapy goals and better outcomes. When we reserve an ongoing therapy time on the schedule, we devote that time to your child and family, and we ask that you also devote that time to therapy. We require patients to maintain a patient cancellation rate of less than 20% (attending 4 out of every 5 scheduled sessions) to keep an ongoing therapy time on the schedule. Clinic cancellations do not count as scheduled sessions. A patient may be removed from their ongoing therapy time and placed on single appointment scheduling if they cancel more than 20% of scheduled sessions.
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Cancellations must be made 24 hours in advance. Late cancellation will result in a $25 fee. The late cancellation fee will be waived if a make-up appointment is scheduled and attended within two weeks. The late cancellation fee may be waived due to occasional sudden illness or emergency. In the event of illness, cancel with as much notice as possible. A patient may be removed from their ongoing therapy time and placed on single appointment scheduling if they have repeated late cancellations.
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You must contact us in advance if you cannot attend a scheduled appointment. A broken appointment (no call no show) will result in a $50 fee. This broken appointment fee will be reduced to $25 if a make-up appointment is scheduled and attended within two weeks. Repeated broken appointments will result in discharge from therapy.
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Please arrive on time for all appointments, and please call if you're running late. If a patient arrives 15 minutes late or more to an appointment, we may cancel and consider it a late cancellation. A patient may be removed from their ongoing therapy time and placed on single appointment scheduling if they have multiple late arrivals.
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You are welcome to leave the clinic during your child's appointment, but you must return at least 10 minutes before the end of the appointment. Pick-up past the hour will result in a $25 late pick-up fee. Repeated late pick-ups may result in discharge from therapy.
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We appreciate your dedication in attending therapy sessions! However, there are times when it is in the best interest of your child and others that they be kept home from therapy. We realize it can be a difficult call. If your child is kept home from school or daycare due to illness, they are also too ill to attend therapy. Please remember that your child will not benefit fully from therapy if they are ill and may expose others to communicable illness. We appreciate your assistance in keeping patients, families, and staff healthy!
Recommended return to therapy after illness:
Fever: Fever-free without the use of fever-reducing medicine for 24 hours.
Respiratory Illness: Symptoms are significantly improved.
Conjunctivitis (pink eye): 24 hours after antibiotic treatment is started.
Strep Throat/Scarlet Fever: 24 hours after antibiotic treatment is started.
Chicken Pox/Shingles: One week from the onset of rash or until all sores crust over.
Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease: One week from the onset of sores/rash.
Ear Infection: Not contagious – pain and underlying illness are deciding factors.
Impetigo: 24 hours after antibiotic treatment is started.
Diarrhea/Vomiting: Free from diarrhea/vomiting for 24 hours.
Pertussis (Whooping Cough): 5 days after antibiotic treatment is started.
Pediculosis (Head Lice): 48 hours after treatment with medicated lice shampoo and combing, if re-examination is clear. We understand this policy is different than school, but there are many soft surfaces in our sensory gyms.
MRSA (staph) infection: Follow physician orders – affected skin areas must be covered completely by a clean, dry bandage.
Other contagious illness: Follow physician orders.
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In the event that severe inclement weather warrants the all-day closing, late opening, or early closing of our clinic, we will announce the closure on our Facebook page. Please note that we make weather decisions independent from school districts.