Early Childhood Intervention Program
Early Childhood Intervention
Our mission is to assure that family members and caregivers of young children have the supports and resources needed to enhance their child’s learning and development through everyday learning opportunities.
The ECI Program provides the following services that are specially designed to meet the needs of infants and toddlers ages 0-3 years:
• Audiology/Hearing
• Assistive Technology
• Behavioral Intervention
• Case Management
• Counseling
• Family Education
• Health Services
• Nursing
• Nutrition and Feeding
• Occupational Therapy
• Physical Therapy
• Social Work
• Specialized Skills Training
• Speech & Language Therapy
• Transition to Services beyond ECI
• Translation/Interpretation
Eligibility
To receive services through Helen Farabee Center's ECI Program, your child must:
• Live in one of these 10 North Texas counties:
Archer, Baylor, Clay, Foard, Hardeman, Jack, Montague,
Wichita, Wilbarger, or Young County
• Have a medically diagnosed condition that will likely result in a developmental delay.
• Have a developmental delay or difficulty with these skills:
Communication – language or speech
Cognitive – thinking, learning, playing, reasoning
Motor – physical development
-Gross motor, such as using large
muscles, to sit up, crawl, walk.
-Fine motor, such as using small muscles, to grab small objects.
-Oral motor, such as using the mouth, to suck, chew.
Social/emotional – bonding, attachment, interactions with others
Self-help – Taking care of own needs (eating, drinking, washing hands,potty-training)
• Have an auditory or visual impairment, determined by local school district personel
Make a Referral
Anyone can request an evaluation.
If you are concerned that an infant or toddler may have a developmental delay or disability, contact ECI for an evaluation. ECI will determine if a child needs services and is eligible to receive them. The family will be involved in the evaluation, assessments and planning next steps.
For more information on Early Childhood Intervention, please call (940) 696-6200 or go to:
https://hhs.texas.gov/services/disability/early-childhood-intervention-services
For a Parent Handbook in English, click here.
For a Parent Handbook in Spanish, click here.
Telehealth
APRIL 2020: In response to the Coronavirus pandemic, the ECI Program is conducting virtual (telehealth) home visits for developmental services, service coordination, and meetings. Virtual eligibility determinations (evaluations) are slated to begin by April 15.
Telehealth is the delivery of early intervention services using distance technology, typically computers, when the early interventionist and child and caregiver are not in the same physical location. Service providers include Speech-language Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, Service Coordinators, and Early Intervention Specialists.
• If you agree to get any of your ECI services via telehealth, you will be asked to sign a Consent for Telehealth and Recording.
• All applicable confidentiality protections, as defined in the “Procedural Safeguards Related to Prior Written Notice and Consent” form and ECI Parent Handbook, shall apply to the services.
• Telehealth fits well with the coaching model in ECI to help you help your child.
POTENTIAL BENEFITS AND RISKS OF TELEHEALTH
Potential Benefits:
1. Improve caregiver skills in fostering their child’s communication by focusing intervention on caregiver-child interactions.
2. Convenient way to receive ECI visits!
3. Increase visits with a licensed therapist, credentialed Early Intervention Specialist, or Service Coordinator.
4. Reduce cancellations due to a family member’s minor illness or provider minor illness.
5. Reduce cancellations due to weather or other conditions.
Potential Risks:
We want to make sure you understand that your privacy is important to us and that your information will be secure. As with any service, there may be potential risks associated with the use of telehealth. These risks include, but may not be limited to:
6. The internet connection used may not be sufficient (e.g., poor picture or sound quality, dropped connections, or audio interference) to allow for effective interaction.
7. The computer must be placed in a safe place to prevent damage.
8. Security protocols of the internet connection could fail, causing a breach of privacy of confidential clinical/medical information (e.g., all internet access must be password protected).
YOUR RIGHTS
o The laws that protect the privacy and confidentiality of health and early intervention information also apply to telehealth.
o If necessary, other technology staff who are trained to handle confidential information may be present during the session to assist with any difficulties
o Parents have the right to refuse, withhold, or withdraw consent to the use of telehealth at any time without risking the loss of services or withdrawal of any ECI services to which you or your child would otherwise be entitled.
o Parents have the right to inspect all information obtained and recorded through telehealth visits.
o Parents have the right to ask questions at any point.
o There may be benefits from telehealth but no results are guaranteed.
HFC- ECI Consent Form for Teleheath
Videos:
Texas ECI: Family to Family https://youtu.be/BS5hUdK2u0c
About Texas ECI https://youtu.be/vA5hilYj5eQ
Parent to Parent: Knowing Your Rights https://youtu.be/MVpf70j_eto
Padre a Padre: Conocer sus Derechos https://youtu.be/_DED6FrZBkU
