Pediatric Brain Injury

Pediatric brain injury often goes unrecognized, especially when it occurs early in a child’s life. Quite often, a child is mistakenly diagnosed with ADHD as symptoms first come to light. Quite often, diagnosis proceeds to one of autism and then Oppositional Defiance Disorder. These diagnoses are too frequently reached without consideration of a brain injury.

Early brain injury quite often impacts the executive reasoning brain processes. It affects the developing child’s ability to acquire language or to learn in an academic setting. When left untreated, a brain injured child is at risk of falling behind in school as they attempt to learn at the same rate as their peers. This child struggles to retain previously learned material with the compounded problem of applying that to newly learned information. Behavioral problems related to the brain as opposed to emotions result in class disruptions, inaccurate diagnosis, a lowered social emotional intelligence, bullying and eventual shunning by peers.

At United Psychological Services we can:

• Diagnose in an accurate and scientific manner using brain behavior tests and neuropsychological assessment to determine the presence of brain impairment from a neuropsychological perspective.
  
  
• Determine intervention and treatment plans based upon the deficits found in the evaluation.
  
  
• Develop specific treatment plans from emotional or behavioral intervention to cognitive/brain training.
  
  
• Work with medical professionals to determine need for further medical interventions and testing.
  
  
• Work within the child’s academic setting regarding behavioral and teaching intervention, development of an IEP plan and specific methods using brain behavior principles to teach the brain injured child.
  
  
• Work with the family and school on emotional, social behavioral interventions.
  
  
• Ongoing social skills group to foster social emotional intelligence and social skills with same age peers.
  
  
• Offer brain/cognitive training to address the individually specific deficits found on the neuropsychological evaluation.
  
  
• Rule out sleep disorders related to pediatric brain injury and/or refer for medical evaluation if further diagnostics are indicated.
  
  
• Address insomnia that may be related to the brain injury using a behavioral treatment program. Address sleep environment factors hindering sleep.