Multidisciplinary assessment

Multidisciplinary assessment is an assessment carried out by lots of different members of a multidisciplinary team. This means that each person carrying out the assessment will have different areas of expertise, for example a multidisciplinary assessment at SLT for Kids may be administered by a speech and language therapist, a psychologist, a physiotherapist, an occupational therapist and a dietician. All of the professionals finding will be amalgamated at the end of the assessment to provide a holistic assessment of the child focusing on lots of different aspects.

A multidisciplinary assessment is usually most appropriate for children with complex needs or lots of difficulties that need to be considered together. They may also be useful for children and families seeking a diagnosis of a specific condition, multiple members of a multidisciplinary team will be able to provide different areas of expertise that may guide a diagnosis.

There are many benefits of a multidisciplinary assessment including:

• Different areas of expertise will allow a holistic view of a child.
• Many different aspects of the child's needs will be considered.
• Some professionals may be trained in observing needs that others are not.

Find out more…

• What will the multidisciplinary assessment assess?
• Why is a multidisciplinary assessment needed?
• Typical conditions that require a multidisciplinary assessment
• What information will I receive following a multidisciplinary assessment?
• Treatment following a multidisciplinary assessment
• Summary

A multidisciplinary assessment involving one of our speech and language therapists can assess any aspect of a child's speech, language, communication, swallowing or voice needs. The assessment will be tailored to each child's specific needs. Many different aspects of a child's difficulties or abilities can be assessed at once during a multidisciplinary assessment due to the different areas of expertise.

A multidisciplinary assessment may be needed if a child has multiple areas of difficulty that would benefit from being assessed as one. It may also be needed if a child has very complex difficulties that require lots of expert support. A multidisciplinary assessment may also be needed if a second opinion is required from a different professional, this can then be provided during the assessment process.

Some examples of conditions that may require a multidisciplinary assessment include:

• Autism spectrum disorders
• Acquired head / brain injury
• Cerebral palsy
• Down's syndrome
• Learning disability
• Stroke
• Eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties

Following your multidisciplinary assessment, each member of the multidisciplinary team will write a detailed report of their findings. These reports may provide specific advice to help manage each of the difficulties that may be identified. The report may also provide some options for treatment that may be beneficial dependent on the needs, abilities and goals of your child.

Many different treatment options will be available after a multidisciplinary assessment depending on the findings from the assessment and the specific needs of your child. SLT for Kids can provide different treatment options for a range of speech, language, communication, swallowing and voice difficulties that may have been identified.

Following the assessment, one of our speech and language therapists will contact you directly to discuss your options in detail. After treatment has started, review assessments may take place in order to assess the progress of that your child has been making and whether any of the difficulties have improved since the initial assessment.

A multidisciplinary assessment is an assessment that is administered by lots of different members of a professional team that have different areas of expertise. This can help gather a holistic view of the child's difficulties and different goals can be identified and prioritised. Our speech and language therapists can provide treatment for any communication or swallowing difficulties that may be identified during a multidisciplinary assessment. If you would like to find out more about our multidisciplinary assessment service, do not hesitate to contact office@sltforkids.co.uk or call 0330 088 2298.