Pediatric Physical Therapist
Parent Q&A
Archived Q&A and Reviews
Questions
Pediatric PT or OT at Kaiser
June 2013
Our daughter's daycare provider is concerned that she is not developing enough truck strength (falling out of chairs, w sitting, etc.) and has recommended that she see a physical therapist or occupational therapist. We really can't afford to pay out of pocket for the person they usually work with so are thinking about going through Kaiser. Does anyone in the BPN community have experience with successfully getting pediatric PT/OT at Kaiser? Any PTs or OTs to try and see and/or avoid? Any tips for getting a Kaiser pediatrician to make the referral? (we love our pediatrician, but she has not been super receptive to these kids of subtle gross motor development issues in the past) Any advice or tips are much appreciated. Thanks
My son received PT at Kaiser Richmond at age four and we were very happy with the service. Alyson Zuppero was the PT and all it took was our pediatrician writing an referral. If you go to your pediatrician with a letter from the school saying that the teachers recommend a PT screen at the very least, that should do the trick to start you off. Once Alyson meets your child, she should be able to determine whether ongoing services are warranted and make it easy to access if so. Good luck! Amy
Alyson is no longer at Kaiser. She moved. I would recommend Stacey Roura in Oakland. Kaiser pediatrician can refer your son for evaluation. That should not be a problem. All the pediatric subspecialty are in Oakland, either in the Mosswood building or in the new building on Broadway. Juliet
PT for 3.5 yo
Jan 2011
I'm looking for a recommendation for a PT for my 3.5 year old. He has mild low tone which is expressed through some stumbling while walking/running, less strength and stamina, balance challenges. I'm in Berkeley, and so far I have a recommendation for Ariel Kozen. Any other recommendation would be greatly appreciated. ISO of PT
I would HIGHLY recommend Sara Stutz, PT (510-375-5420) to work with your son. Sara is incredibly patient, creative, and highly skilled. She started working with my now 10 year old son when he was just about 2.5 years old. He has low tone, motor planning challenges, sensory issues, social skills issues, rigidity, etc, and Sara has helped him tremendously in all of these areas in her PT sessions. My son was sometimes resistant and Sara created lots of motivating games/scenarios geared to his specific interests that incorporated his goals. As he got older she consulted on site at his school helping the staff and his peers include him more seamlessly in lunchtime and PE games. The difference in his willingness to participate and skills(!!) over the years is really remarkable. I would definitely call Sara. anon
When our son was about 4-month old, we had Emily Noonan for a in-home visit to see how to adjust our son's left-right imbalance. She was good with babies and gave a lot of useful information. You might want to give her a try. I think she works at Childrens and also has a private practice in Alameda.
emily [at] emilynoonandpt.com
Have you discussed your wish for additional therapy with your regional center PT (assuming you like them)? Regional Center will sometimes approve therapy for more than once a week if it seems needed and justified; the PT would have to write a specific recommendation, which may or may not be approved, or could be approved for a specified amount of time to see if it helps. You already have a lot of different people coming, and it can be overwhelming for you (and your baby) to keep switching between different people and different styles.