Average Waiting Times for Various Assessments of Special Needs Children

Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong asked the Minister for Social and Family Development what is the current average waiting time for an undiagnosed special needs child (i) to be screened for developmental needs under the Development Support and Learning Support programme and (ii) to be assessed by early intervention professionals and paediatricians at the Child Development Programme at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital and National University Hospital.

In preschools, educators may refer children with suspected developmental needs for screening by a Learning Support Educator (LSEd). A LSEd is an Early Intervention (EI) professional with Early Childhood (EC) experience, who has been trained to deliver the Development Support – Learning Support (DS-LS) programme by working closely with the EC educators and parents/ caregivers. The screening is conducted by the LSEd in the child’s preschool. The LSEd will assess the child’s needs and suitability for the DS-LS programme, which serves children requiring low levels of EI support. At present, children are generally screened within four weeks from the point of referral by the educator.

Following the screening by LSEd, children assessed to require intervention by an Allied Health Professional (e.g. therapists, psychologists) will be referred to the Child Development Programme (CDP) at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) and National University Hospital (NUH) for medical evaluation. The average waiting time for the first medical consultation at KKH or NUH is between three to four weeks from the point of referral.