Best Practices in Early Childhood Intervention in Australia

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Early childhood is a crucial period of each person’s development. It’s a time when our bodies and brains grow incredibly fast. It’s also a time when we rapidly gain new skills and knowledge. Think about it: babies and young children develop a host of abilities in their first few years, including the ability to roll over, sit up, walk, talk, dress and feed themselves.

During early childhood, our brains are most able to change in response to our environment and experiences.[i] Scientists call the brain’s capacity to change ‘plasticity’. Early childhood intervention taps into this plasticity to support children with disability or developmental delay to reach their full potential.

Effective early intervention supports must be based on proven strategies that promote healthy children’s development. This has led to the creation of what’s known as ‘best practice’ approaches to early childhood intervention.

What does ‘best practice mean’?

‘Best practice’ is a procedure or set of guidelines that research has shown will lead to the best possible outcomes if followed. In early childhood intervention services, best practice principles guide the way professionals work with children with disability or developmental delay and their families. Research suggests that best practice in early childhood intervention involves following a family-centred, inclusive and team-based approach.[ii]

Here are some of the key principles underlying best practices in early childhood intervention in Australia.

Best practice early childhood intervention

1. Early identification of disability or developmental delay

The success of any early childhood intervention program begins with early identification. By recognising developmental delays or disabilities at an early stage, families and professionals can start making use of appropriate supports as soon as possible, which helps to maximise their impact. In Australia, the importance of early identification is acknowledged and supported through screening programs – such as newborn hearing and bloodspot screening.

Key practices include:

  • Routine developmental screening – general practitioners, child health nurses, and early childhood educators play a key role in screening children for developmental delays. Along with basic measures like height and weight, they use special tools (such as the Ages and Stages Questionnaire and Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status) to assess children’s developmental progress.
  • Multidisciplinary assessments – once a possible developmental issue is identified, children often undergo assessments by a team of specialists. Depending on the issue, this may include assessments by a paediatrician, physiotherapist, speech pathologist, dietitian and/or an occupational therapist. This multidisciplinary approach provides a more complete understanding of the child’s needs and helps with planning appropriate intervention strategies.

2. Family-centred practice

This principle recognises that children do not grow up in isolation. In fact, the child’s family has a powerful influence on every aspect of their development – including their emotional, social, physical and cognitive development.[iii]

Family-centred approaches stress the importance of collaboration between families and professionals. This helps ensure support plans are tailored not only to the child’s needs but also to the family’s circumstances, strengths, and preferences.

Culturally sensitive early childhood intervention

Culturally sensitive practice helps enhance participation in early childhood intervention.

Best practices in family-centred approaches include:

Joint goal setting

Families are encouraged to participate in setting goals for their child’s intervention. This helps ensure the intervention fits in with the family’s priorities and daily routines. Effective goals are realistic, functional, and able to be embedded within everyday activities, making it easier for families to support their child’s progress.

Capacity building

Rather than simply providing therapy for the child, many early intervention programs in Australia focus on building the capacity of families to support their child’s development at home. This can include training caregivers to use strategies to enhance communication, motor skills, or social interactions. Building the family’s capacity makes interventions more sustainable and effective in the long term.

A strengths-based focus

Strengths-based practice focuses on what children and families can do, rather than what they cannot do. It is about recognising and building on people’s assets and abilities, not trying to ‘fix’ their weaknesses. A strengths-based approach encourages families to make their own decisions and draw on their strengths, promoting a greater sense of control and facilitating empowerment.

Cultural sensitivity

Australia is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world. Early childhood intervention programs that respect cultural traditions and preferences are more likely to engage families from diverse backgrounds. This may include understanding and accommodating language, religion, food choices, and other preferences to enhance participation and collaboration.

T3. Evidence-based interventions

Use of evidence-based interventions is a core principle of the early childhood approach in Australia. Evidence-based interventions are grounded in developmental science and have been proven through rigorous research.

Some widely used evidence-based early interventions in Australia include:

  • The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) – originally developed in the United States, the ESDM is a comprehensive, play-based intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) aged 12-48 months. It combines developmental and behavioural strategies to support optimal development through play and daily routines. The ESDM has been shown to improve language and cognitive development in young children with autism.[iv] 
  • Feeding Therapy programs, such as SOS Feeding Approach – various health professionals (including paediatric dietitians) work together to assess and manage problematic feeding behaviours in children. Studies indicate that this approach can be helpful for children with feeding disorders and mealtime behaviour challenges.[v],[vi]
  • Play-based therapy – play-based approaches recognise that children learn and develop new skills by playing. They harness children’s natural motivation and enjoyment of play to support development in areas such as language, motor skills, and social-emotional development. Play-based therapy is incorporated into various types of therapeutic supports, such as occupational therapy and paediatric physiotherapy interventions.

4. Inclusion and participation

Inclusion is a core value in Australia’s early childhood intervention system. The aim is to ensure children with disability or developmental delay can take part in early childhood activities such as playgroups, helping them develop a sense of belonging. The emphasis on inclusion reflects a broader goal of ensuring all children have an equal opportunity to engage with their peers and their community. 

Best practices in promoting inclusion include:

Supporting children within natural environments

Natural environments are the everyday settings children take part in, including the home, early childhood education and care centres, and the community. These settings are full of opportunities for children to practice a range of skills and gain a sense of belonging. Practising new skills in such environments, with support from people like caregivers, is more effective than delivering interventions in isolation once or twice a week.

Integrated services

To help ensure children receive support that suits their daily routines, many early childhood intervention providers collaborate with early learning centres. This allows children to receive therapy and support within the context of their early learning setting, making the intervention more relevant to their everyday life.

Play based early childhood intervention

Play-based approaches draw on children’s natural enjoyment of play to support skill development.

Peer interaction

Supporting children to engage with their peers is a key focus of many early childhood interventions. This typically involves supporting children to develop the social and communication skills they need to play and interact with others. It may also involve supporting their peers to understand and engage with children who have developmental differences.

Timely, equitable and accessible service delivery

Early childhood intervention is most effective when commenced as early as possible. This involves not only early identification of disability or developmental delay, but also timely access to support services. Equitable service delivery means all children should have access to the support they need to reach their potential, regardless of their ability, ethnicity, location, or cultural background.

5. Team-based care

Effective early childhood intervention often requires input from a range of professionals, including educators, allied health professionals, specialists and community organisations. In Australia, collaborative, team-based service delivery is recognised as a best practice. This approach helps ensure that all aspects of a child’s development are supported through a coordinated, unified approach.

Best practices in collaboration include:

  • Interdisciplinary teamwork – many early intervention service providers (including Active Ability) have a team of health professionals from different disciplines, such as paediatric dietitians, paediatric physiotherapists, and others. These professionals work together, and with other providers when needed, to assess, plan, and deliver therapeutic supports. This helps ensure everyone has a comprehensive understanding of the child’s needs and works together to help the child and family achieve the best outcome.
  • Collaboration with early childhood educators – early intervention providers often work closely with early childhood educators, helping them to implement strategies within the classroom. This partnership strengthens the link between intervention and the child’s everyday learning environment, fostering better outcomes for the child.

Evidence-based, family-focused early intervention that comes to you

At Active Ability, we provide early intervention support services for children with intellectual disability, autism, neurological conditions and mental health concerns. Our team of dedicated health professionals use strategies that are backed by research and built on an understanding of how our brains and bodies grow.

We also know therapy needs to be fun, so we develop plans around what your child enjoys. We also know it needs to work for your whole family, so we can visit your child at a location that suits you – whether that’s at home, school, childcare or the park.

And with no waiting list, you can get started with therapy as soon as you’re ready. To find out more, contact us on (02) 8678 7874, email hello@activeability.com.au or use our contact form.

REFERENCES:

[i] – Harvard University Center on the Developing Child (2007). The Science of Early Childhood Development (InBrief). Available at  www.developingchild.harvard.edu. Accessed 2 October 24. 

[ii] – Early Childhood Intervention Australia. Best Practice Guidelines for Early Childhood Intervention. Available at https://www.flipsnack.com/earlychildhoodintervention/ecia-national-guidelines-best-practice-in-eci/full-view.html. Accessed 2 October 24. 

[iii] – Berger, L. M., & Font, S. A. (2015). The Role of the Family and Family-Centered Programs and Policies. The Future of children, 25(1), 155–176. 

[iv] – Fuller, E. A., Oliver, K., Vejnoska, S. F., & Rogers, S. J. (2020). The Effects of the Early Start Denver Model for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis. Brain sciences, 10(6), 368. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci10060368 

[v] – Benson, J. D., Parke, C. S., Gannon, C., & Muñoz, D. (2013). A Retrospective Analysis of the Sequential Oral Sensory Feeding Approach in Children with Feeding Difficulties. Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention, 6(4), 289–300. https://doi.org/10.1080/19411243.2013.860758  

[vi] – Kim, A. R., Kwon, J. Y., Yi, S. H., & Kim, E. H. (2021). Sensory Based Feeding Intervention for Toddlers With Food Refusal: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Annals of rehabilitation medicine, 45(5), 393–400. https://doi.org/10.5535/arm.21076

 

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