Frequently asked questions

ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is hereditary and usually shows its first signs during established walking shortly after the first year of life. It is characterised by impulsivity, distraction and/or hyperactivity. Usually children with ADHD cannot complete an activity, forget their things or lose them, twist in their chair, get out of their seat and tend to be constantly on the move. They also jump very quickly from one topic to another, interrupt their interlocutor or talk over them. More often, they move aimlessly around the room and while they usually have good mental potential, they may miss information because they cannot memorize the instructions and thus the result may come out wrong. 

It is diagnosed without a test but by taking a good history from the prenatal period (mothers describe the infant moving strongly already in the womb) and maintaining the same clinical picture in at least two of the three environments (home, school, external environment). For some cases of children, hyperactivity does not occur but they are overcome by a “dreamy” state in which they seem lost, staring fixedly at one point and lost in thought. 

ADHD does not pass but gradually decreases with neurological maturation of the brain. With specific therapies, especially occupational therapy or the psycho-educational method of psychologists, there can be a significant reduction in symptoms.   

In order to talk about dyslexia, first of all, the child needs to have reached an age where the mechanism of reading and writing has been fully mastered, i.e. around the middle of the second grade. In order to ascertain this, it is necessary to test the intelligence index using the WISC psychometric scale, which is now in its fifth version. This is necessary because dyslexia is a learning difficulty in reading or writing (laborious reading, spelling difficulties, dysgraphia, omissions, substitutions or transpositions of letters) where the child has a normal IQ.

The KEDASY is the competent body of the Ministry of Education that can certify dyslexia and then the child can benefit from relief at school both in terms of exam time and not being taken by teachers for mistakes in their writing. Finally, he can be tested orally from A level onwards. 

The compensation now works by submitting supporting documents and payment receipts electronically. You can find all the necessary links explaining the procedure on the main page of our site. 

Many parents wonder if special therapies are the only way to deal with autism difficulties. So far there does not seem to be any other method or pharmacology scientifically proven to treat it. That is, no evidence appears in any scientific research that it is statistically proven that alternative methods of intervention work helpfully. Some parents are trying the stem cell method, however we have not observed any significant difference in the child's behavior after the infusion. It is very important that parents consult medical specialists before deciding to do anything that sells their hope dearly.

Most children with significant difficulties, who have started early with special therapies intervention (i.e. before the age of 3), are placed in mainstream schools, but usually with the support of a ”special support' teacher approved by the relevant KEDASY agency. Some repeat nursery school and thus enter primary school at a more mature age. Finally, for some children, starting primary school may be more helpful by placing them in a special primary school and after a few years the case of transferring them to a formal school is reconsidered. 

It is not yet fully clear what all the reasons are for this increase. However, the factor of parents' advanced childbearing age, heredity and more mass early attendance at paediatric psychiatrists and developmental specialists are perhaps the three most important reasons why each year the number is rising.  

When parents are involved in the early intervention programme (i.e. they are in the treatment room) and are trained by the therapists on the ways in which they should communicate and interact with their child, the results are certainly much more encouraging, at least in relation to autism spectrum disorder. At the same time, the instructions given for the home, when applied, are crucial for a better prognosis, for example in a diaper removal training, in an environment modification or even in a child's feeding difficulty. Therefore, it is clear that parents are co-therapeutic for their child's progress and when they cooperate satisfactorily with their therapist, as is the case with our team, they don't have to do anything else.

Each child has his or her own developmental rhythms, which is why the programme is individualised. When each child will speak is determined by their difficulty, their learning rates and the cooperation between the parents and the therapist so that the instructions they receive are followed each time. One should also take into account possible organic factors that may delay speech production. 

The cost of each treatment is determined by the type of treatment and the frequency of the programme. A part of the monthly cost is covered by the insurance funds, following an opinion from a child psychiatrist or a paediatric developmental psychiatrist. According to the opinion received by each child, the amount to be received by the parent-guardian is determined by the competent institution on a monthly basis.

The goal of all special education professionals is to achieve autonomy for each child. For the majority of children with developmental deficits we can see a complete rehabilitation of the difficulties, especially with regard to articulation disorder, speech delay and gross motor immature. For children with ADHD, the remission of symptoms depends on the maturation of the neurological system and good cooperation between specialists and the child's family environment. For children on the autistic spectrum, functioning depends on the severity and the earliest possible start of intervention. It is not an easy question to answer, but many children have surprised us by the progress they have made. 

The type of programme each child will need is decided by the team of specialists who have assessed the child. The attending physician (developmental physician, paediatric psychiatrist, paediatric neurologist) who monitors the child has usually the first say and then we take into account the parents' request and the child's clinical picture. In this way we decide together on the most suitable programme based on the child's needs and the family's financial capacity. The programmes carried out do not exceed four to five sessions per week.  

There are children who need a maximum of 4 to 6 months to remediate their difficulties, such as for articulation disorder or handwriting, while others where the learning rates are slower need more than 6 months. Based on the severity of symptoms, consistency in the programme and the satisfactory cooperation of parents with therapists, the time taken to achieve the treatment goals is also affected. 

All sessions last 45 minutes. However, there are occasions when the child cannot follow a combined programme on the same day, so we split the sessions into different days during the week.

You can call our Centre by phone or fill in the contact form on the page Contact. Our secretariat will guide you through the available days and times, as well as the necessary documents needed for the first assessment.