Babies Can't Wait

C.,

I don't know if you have located any information yet or not however their website is http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/

You should be able to find more information there.

Blessings,

I do not have any info about the program, but my son did not start talking until he was 26 months old. It was just a small speech delay. Now he talks all the time!! I would just tell her not to worry because children start to talk at all different times. My older son starting talking very early on but it took my 2 year old longer because every child is different. Good Luck

Health District 6: Augusta. Babies Can't Wait Program. 1916 North Leg Road. Augusta, GA 30909. ###-###-####. FAX: ###-###-#### I have personal experience with Babies Can't Wait and it is a awesome program. I hope this helps!

Yes, we used it for my daughter and he should be evaluated. They are incredible. It is completely worth investigating to see if he qualifies. In Richmond Hill/Hinesville the contact # is ###-###-#### x.247
Also, West Rehab in RH or Hinesville/Savannah can put you in contact with a coordinator. The RH # for them is ###-###-####.
Good luck!

I read this alot through your responses..but I felt I needed to say it! tell your friend to go with her gut and demand he be tested for speech and for hearing!! my son was 2 1/2 before I did this and he was speaking on a 15 mo old level, he then had tubes and an adnoidectomy and in 6 months was doing better, but now I fear from waiting so long that the ear infections caused hearing loss, we go next month to have his hearing tested. OH there is also another program through the school system called child find, she can go now, she doesn't have to wait until he is in school. Good luck!

One of the children from our playgroup has been working with a therapist through babies can't wait (he is 2.5 and has only been working with the therapist for 5 weeks - we just were talking about this today). From my indirect understanding the family has been pleased with results (and they were referred from a friend who was really pleased). They also come to your house to work with the child. So I don't have any hands on info to pass along, just a thumbs up. Best of luck!

I actually do have some experience with this, but mine was a tad older. At my son's 2 year old check up he had only about 10-15 words, no two word combos like he should have. I did notice this earlier , but pedia trician want ed to give it until his 2 year mark. She put in referral for a speech eval. For some reason they were able to get me an appt with Children's Healthcare earlier than Babies Can't Wait. Insurance covered all but 10% of the eval (HMO blue choice) and cover all of the 20 visits a calendar year. However, somewhere about 2 months after his second bday and the eval his vocab expanded significantly, on his own. We are still with the speech therapist working with some issues though. My friend had Babies Can't Wait eval, they came to her house. If insurance doesn't pay, then I think they use a sliding scale. They told her he didn't qualify, but he did qualify with the school district once he was 3. In Georgia they can be served when they are 3 ( My older son had this). If you are that concerned right now, push it with the pediatrician for an eval now. Their insurance people in the office should be able to tell you if your ins will cover it. If you have to pay out of pocket, dont' use Children's Healthcare if you can find a private one. One hour of speech therapy is over 300! Hope this helps a little
V.

C.,
She needs to check her local DHR office. I pulled this from the DHR website. Good Luck to your friend! It may not really be an issue though...my 2nd daughter was the same way...then all of a sudden she started speaking in full sentences...floored my husband and I. She is a healthy 6 almost 7 year old who talks constantly now! :-)

Anyone who suspects that a child may be delayed in his/her development can visit
http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/ or call toll-free 1-800-229-2038 or, in Atlanta,
###-###-#### to find the closest BCW office.

Parents as Teachers is also another resource. Not sure which cities in GA has this program, the military has a pilot military program at Ft Stewart. Your elementary school counselor should know if your local area has this program, it also may be ran by the Title I department at your school district headquarters. This is a national program headquartered in St Louis, MO. google Parents as Teachers to get to the national website.

Hello,
I work for Public Health and there is a Babies Can't Wait program in Rome. I'm not sure of what all they do but here is a contact name and number, Crystal Davidick, ###-###-####.

May God bless and keep you

C.,
I have b/g twins who were born with torticolis (sp?) who were both accepted into the Babies Can't Wait program and have received physical therapy services through the program. The first step is to contact Children 1st in your county (http://health.state.ga.us/programs/childrenfirst/) this is an umbrella organization that manages many child services organizations including BCW.

After you apply you will be contacted by an intake coordinator who will meet with you then schedule an evaluation of your child by a multi-disciplinary team. The team we met with included a speach therapist, child psychologist and PT. If accepted into the program, you will be assigned to a Service Coordinator who will give you a list of service providers in the BCW program - many different services available. I recommend calling several providers on the list - I found a PT who comes to my home on Saturday mornings. Payment for services are based on your income but are billed at Medicare rates and your health insurance may cover them. So far I have not paid out of pocket for our PT services.
Good luck!

Hi - I'm not sure about babies can't wait but there is a SC program called "BABYNET". Check out http://www.scdhec.net/health/mch/cshcn/programs/babynet/.

Hope this helps!
S.

Babies Can't Wait number is ###-###-####. I know that things have changed with this service so just get her to call and see what she needs to do to get services. Also University has a free hearing screen, not sure where to call for that. Hope this is a start!

GREAT program. Take advantage of this opportunity as it is only available until they are three years old.

C.,
Babies Can't Wait is an early intervention program in GA that is organized by county. She would need to find the office in the county in which she lives. A service coordinator would meet with the family and based on the assessment, needs would be determined. BCW works with SLP's, OT's, PT's and has special instructors that provide a variety of activities, all in the child's natural environment (at home, daycare, etc.) The did accept Medicaid and Peachcare, but I don't remember the costs with other types of insurance. If you go to www.georgia.gov there should be a link on it to the program.
Hope that helps a little...
R. R.

My son who is 2 1/2 is having speech therapy through Babies Can't wait right now. I don't have the phone number, but I received the information originally from my pediatrician.

A.

I used Babies Can't Wait for my daughter when she wasn't speaking and they were great! They will provide services if an evaluation deems it necessary until a child turns 3. After that, if services are still needed, the child is transitioned into the school system. We had to pay a minimal amount for speech therapy. Here is the link to a site with more info, including their phone number: http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/

I wish your friend good luck.
G.

Hey C., my daughter is 2 1/2 years old and is in the Babies Can't Wait program. How it works is the pediatrician makes a referral to Babies Can't Wait. The mother then calls up to schedule an evaluation which may take 2-3 months to get a date. The child is then evaluated by botha speech therapist and an occupational therapist. Based on that evaluation the mother then knows whether her child qualifies or not. If he qualifies, she is given a list of therapists in the area. If she has ins. that covers that particular delay, they pay and Babies Can't Wait pays the mom's portion, including the deductible. If mom does not have ins. that covers speech, based on their family income, Babies Can't Wait lets her know what her % of the medicaid rate (I think it's $50/visit) would be. My daughter doesn't articulate and wasn't speaking clearly leaving us in wonder of how to meet her needs when we couldn't understand her. We began the program when she was 2 years 3 months old. Love it. Her ped. isn't concerned that he hasn't spoken at all? I'm a ped. neonatal nurse and it sounds like a problem to me. Hope this helps, K.

Call ###-###-####
That is the number to Region 3 in Tucker. I am a nurse for the state and I do assessments for waiver approvals for cases just like this little boy. Tell your friend to ask about Babies Can't Wait as well as The Katie Beckett Waiver and a Personal supports waiver. These waivers give financial funding for the services that he will need (private therapy, etc). Last year we had a huge amount of new waivers released. I am not sure which ones have a waiting list at this point, but she needs to call region 3 to get the paperwork started. When she calls region 3, tell her to speak to request that a listing of all of the waiver programs be sent to her. I am certain that this can be done via e-mail. I looked to see if I had one that I can fwd but can not locate it. This listing will give her some wonderful insight as to what each waiver covers and can be used for. Good Luck!!!!
K

Both of my kids have speech problems and have had them since birth. Let your friend know that all she has to do is go the Babies Can't Wait office or call them and see what she needs to do. My kids are ages 9 and 6 now and still go to speech therapy. Also, have your friend get the little one to stick his tongue out as far as he can. Once he gets it out, look at the tip. If the tip looks like the top of a heart, he is what they call "tongue tied" (that is a real conndition....both of my kids and my Husband had it when they were babies) She can then tell her pediatrician about that. They can clip the tongue and correct that. Good luck!!!!! I have also used the Babies Can't Wait program until my kids turned 3 then went to the elementary school and enrolled them in Pre-K Idea for speech and articulation therapy. They went to this until it was time to start Pre-K. They are still in therapy to this day.

I am going through a simlar situation. My daughter is 18 months old and she does say a few words, but not as many as she is supposed to say according to the "charts". I was able to meet with an early intervention specialist through a free screening and we have started the process of seeing what we can do to further my little ones speech. She needs to press the issue of having her son screened. The earlier the problem is caught the better chance to fix it before it becomes an even bigger problem. Here is a link to the GA webiste that talks about BCW. http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/

C.,

I cannot tell you how important it is to tell your friend to QUICKLY get her son to another doctor!! If her pediatrician is not taking her seriously, which it sounds like he/she is not then be a true friend and help he make an appointment with a better doctor.

My son was up for his 18-month appointment and I took his baby book with me because I recognized that his once large vocabulary has now shrunk to three words, Ma, BaBa, and Bye. Up to this point he had over 60 words in his vocabulary that he could say and over 200 that he would respond properly too.

His doctor poo poo-ed me until I brought out his book with each new work well documented! He looked at me and then at Matt and immediately made an appointment with a hearing specialist that afternoon at which we found out he had only 5 % hearing in his right ear and 35 percent hearing in his left ear. HAD I NOT INSISTED ON MY DEMAND THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH MY SON, HIS DOCTOR WOULD HAVE JUST SEEN US AS ANOTHER MOTHER AND CHILD IN HIS BUSY DAY.

C., you be her friend through this. My son had tubes put in to relieve his ear aches (24 in 18 months) that were damaging his eardrums. He was allergic to antibiotics and could not take them to end the earaches so we would have to let the ear drum burst for the earache to end. They did not want to put tubes in for they were afraid that he might now wake up from the surgery due to his allergies to medicines. But when he went deaf they sent us to a specialist and they determined he was allergic to certain drugs but on those that they use to put you to sleep for surgery.

Many times when a mother is in the middle of a serious situation she is not thinking well. She cannot see the forest for the trees! You are more removed from the situation and can help her see what is occurring.

If the child is deaf or going deaf and her doctor is now offering any advice or moving her to the specific programs to help her child then DROP HIM/HER LIKE THE BAD HABIT THAT HE IS!!! A MOTHER KNOW HER CHILD BEST-SHE IS WITH HER CHILD ALL DAY. A DOCTOR ONLY SEES YOUR CHILD FOR
THE 4 MINUTES THAT THEY RUSH IN AND THEN OUT ON TO THE NEXT PATIENT'S ROOM.

Call your congressman and ask his staff for help! They are a wonderful resource---I mean it! They are happy to send you to the right agency. Go on line and Google this organization you are speaking about. One last thing, the next time you are with your friends child move to behind him and drop a loud pot and see if he turns his head to see what the racket is. If he does not turn to look for the noise-then he did not hear the noise. Remember that your friend has many fears racing though her mind at this point and she may or may not be getting support from her husband. Be her friend and walk this path with her. Good Luck
Ms C.

Hi C.,

My twin boys started this program last year and to me is such a blessing. This is s free program state founded I guess and is provided by the school districts. One of my twin boys was born with a cleft Lip and Palate, so he needs speech therapy. They did hearing evaluations and vision, you have to provide with some information and after thoses tests, they do a develomental/comunication skills evaluation. This part lasted about 1.5 hours for him ( he was 3) and at the end with all this info they concluded that he qualified for speech therapy through the school system. Well, then one of the public schools near me contacted me and told me that beacuse, not only his speech needed help,but also his comunication lebel was delayed about a year, he could qualify for a 3 days a week program, at the special education pre school, which is part of the elementary school (Arnold Mill),not just the coupple hours speech therapy. So they did was is called a personalized program, and he started going 3 days a week, from 7:45 am to 10:45. They even provide transportation, so my itty bitty munchkin comes home in a bus!
Since we had noticed that his twin brother had the same issues (minus the physical part), we decided to have him tested as well and see if he could also benefit from this program. His speech was also delayed as well as his comunication lebel. So he went through the same process and he did start one month after his brother. Is a very small class, only 5 of them, they have learned SO much, and they really love the school. They do everything, circle time, story time, they draw, paint, do craft, learn letters numbers, you name it. And of course, the speech therapys pulls them out a 1 1/2 hrs a day. The teachers are wonderful and I think the program is awesome.
Now, I have the number for the Cherokee County district, it is 1-888-276-1558. I think she can contact the her school district and it may be a different number.
Anyways, I just wanted to tell you my experience, which has been incredible for them and us.

Check with the local school system. They can direct your friend toward an evaluation and free therapy for preschoolers. It is very important to do so soon. Good luck!

Yes, Babies Can't Wait 5 is to late. All she needs to do is call the number tell them she would like to have her son evauluated and what for. They will get her in contact with case manger and it will get set up from there. Easy ! They even come to your house to do it :)
My daughter was in it for speech until she was 3. They do charge according to how much money you make but it is still VERY resonable! M.

Babies Can't Wait-###-###-#### in Atlanta. The State BCW Office number is ###-###-#### or toll free: 1-888-651-8224.

C.,

I don't know what it is called in GA but in SC it is called BabtNet and it is a state fund that pays for children to have PT, OT, ST and Early Interv. services until they turn 3, then the school district takes over from there if needed.

http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/index.asp

here is their webpage:
http://health.state.ga.us/programs/bcw/
This is a great organization and there are some very helpful people. I have worked with preschoolers and toddlers that were recieving services through this program.
Good Luck!
R.

The state health department offers programs and assistance..Summerville has one downtown, let me know if you need a different location.

My son was referred to Babies Can't Wait @ 2 1/2 years old because he hardly said any words. He didn't even say 50 words. Your friend's pediatrician should be able to refer him. She should ask for the referral soon because it may take awhile to find a therapist with an available appointment. Babies Can't Wait is only good until the child is 3 years of age. I didn't use them because of this. None of the therapists had any appointments before his 3rd b'day. Does her son attend childcare? My son attended an in-home childcare for the first 2 years and he started at our church's weekday school in November (before 3rd b'day) he now is speaking in sentences. It is still sometimes hard trying to understand some words but my husband and I believe the school did a world of difference. Good luck to her.