By Jill Pease
Dr. Christine Myers, Clinical Associate Professor & Program Director, MOT & OTD, PHHP Department of Occupational Therapy; Dr. Claudia Senesac, Department of Physical Therapy; Lori-Ann Ferraro, Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences.
For children with disabilities, early intervention by therapists can make a significant difference in their motor, cognitive, sensory processing and communication development, leading to better health and well-being for the children and their families.
Yet in Florida, there are not enough qualified occupational, physical and speech-language therapists to meet the growing demand for services for infants and toddlers with disabilities. The shortage has led to longer wait times for therapists through Florida’s early intervention program, Early Steps. For example, across 10 North Central Florida rural counties, there are only a handful of Early Steps therapists available to treat children with disabilities.
A new UF program hopes to change that. Beginning this fall, the Interdisciplinary Related Services Personnel Preparation for Early Childhood, or INSPIRE, program will train 45 UF occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology graduate students, giving them the skills to treat very young children with high-intensity needs who have significant disabilities or multiple disabilities. The five-year program is supported by a $1.24 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
“If we can increase the workforce in early intervention and early childhood programs and provide very high-quality services, I think we’re going to do a lot to improve the lives of young people and their families,” said INSPIRE Director Christine T. Myers, Ph.D., OTR/L, a clinical associate professor in PHHP’s department of occupational therapy.
Attracting therapists to careers in state-funded early intervention and early childhood programs has traditionally been a challenge because the compensation is typically lower than in other settings, Myers said. In addition, many degree programs do not have the ability to provide in-depth training on working with this patient population, so therapists may not feel adequately prepared.
“Even though the pay in early intervention isn’t as high as in other practice areas, it’s extremely rewarding work because you get to work with children and families, usually in their homes or in their communities. You get to know the families very, very well and you can really help to make a difference in these children’s lives,” said Myers, the director of UF’s Master of Occupational Therapy and Doctor of Occupational Therapy programs.
To address financial concerns, the INSPIRE program will cover one full year of tuition for INSPIRE scholars, helping to reduce their student loan debt and relieve some of their financial burden after graduation.
Led by Myers, along with co-directors Lori-Ann Ferraro, M.A., CCC-SLP, a clinical lecturer in the department of speech, language, and hearing sciences, and Claudia Senesac, Ph.D., P.T., PCS, a clinical associate professor in the department of physical therapy, INSPIRE scholars will participate in specialized coursework and fieldwork over the course of a year and a half. Training will include mentoring from local therapists and the opportunity to work directly with children and families. Throughout, the curriculum will emphasize working in interprofessional teams and using coaching strategies with parents and caregivers.
“Using coaching models with parents and caregivers has been shown to be the most promising type of approach for working with infants and toddlers,” Myers said. “I think any graduate who has the ability to use coaching models is going to be in very high demand because it’s something even experienced therapists need training and guidance to use.”