Blog: One Family’s Journey through Early Intervention at RHSC
In honor of Early Intervention (EI) Awareness Month, we asked longtime EI provider Rochester Hearing and Speech Center to share why they continue serving young children with developmental delays and disabilities despite the current crisis in the program. TCA’s Kids Can’t Wait campaign organizes parents, caregivers, providers, early childhood advocates and others from across the state who want to bring change to this broken system. At the heart of all efforts to reform the EI system are children like Lani, whose lives can be changed by therapeutic interventions and who are too often told they have to wait.
One Family’s Journey through Early Intervention at RHSC
Author: Sara Calus PT, DPT, Director of Educational & Clinical Services, Rochester Hearing & Speech Center
Jalani, affectionately known as “Lani” to the staff at Rochester Hearing & Speech Center (RHSC), is a sweet, funny and determined little girl who loves music, friends and her dog, Jello. Lani is one of our amazing success stories here at RHSC. Born prematurely, it soon became clear to her family that Lani wasn’t meeting her developmental milestones. They met with doctors and medical specialists but were often given the ‘wait and see’ option, citing that she would move independently and develop when she was ready. Lani was finally referred to Early Intervention (EI) at just over a year old and qualified for services due to her delays. However, the family now faced a new challenge.
There is a chronic shortage of EI Providers and in Monroe County waitlists can reach up to 700 children who have been determined eligible to receive services but cannot find a provider. Luckily, Lani and her family found the monthly Early Intervention Developmental Play Dates that RHSC hosts. Playdates are an opportunity for families of young children who are waiting for or are currently receiving therapeutic services to participate in curated developmentally appropriate games, crafts, and activities that are supervised and run by licensed physical, occupational and speech therapists as well as special education teachers. Lani began regularly attending these playdates and quickly became a staff favorite.
RHSC’s Director of Educational & Clinical Services Sara Calus PT, DPT, regularly attends these playdates. Sara and the other staff clinicians suggested activities and support tips to implement at home and answered questions about the EI process in Monroe County. The team determined that Lani would be an excellent candidate for EI Developmental Group services at RHSC where she would receive occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech-language therapy and special education services concurrently through a structured learning environment based on play. Delivered in a small group setting, EI Developmental Groups provided Lani with a peer-group and Lani’s family with a support system.
Shortly after Lani’s second birthday, her family enrolled her in the developmental play group at RHSC. By her third birthday, Lani took her first unassisted steps at RHSC, an occasion that was celebrated by everyone!
As Lani “aged out” of Early Intervention at the end of 2025, she continued to receive one-on-one preschool therapeutic services at RHSC through the Rochester City School District. Her family continued to see her independence and social engagement bloom. Lani is now walking more on her own at home, and her speech has continued to improve. Her favorite sentence is, “Are you kidding me?”. Her funny, engaging personality really shines. Lani is catching up developmentally to her peers. She graduated from the RHSC program in August and began preschool this fall.
Her grandmother Terri says, “Lani would not be where she is today without Rochester Hearing & Speech Center. Working together as a team, not only were her therapists at RHSC able to give Lani what she needed each day, but she had the benefit of a motivating peer group.” Terri adds that “Lani will be in an integrated classroom at preschool this fall because of RHSC. RHSC changed Lani’s life and moved her forward.”
New York State’s Early Intervention Program offers services, free of charge for families, to infants and toddlers from birth through age three who have or are suspected of having a development delay or disability. Once Monroe County determines that a child is eligible, providers like RHSC offer speech-language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy and/or special education to address their specific developmental needs. The Federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and New York State require that children receive services within 30 days of evaluation. However, in Monroe County, there are currently 700 children waiting for Early Intervention services for more than 30 days due to provider shortages. Shortages and waitlists are a statewide problem, and many children age out of the program without ever receiving the mandated services.
RHSC is the only nonprofit provider of EI services remaining in Monroe County. Low reimbursement rates and workforce shortages of physical and occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists have forced other programs to stop providing EI. Reimbursement rates for EI services are $14 less today than they were when the program began in 1994 while the cost of professional degrees and the cost of living has continued to increase. In spite of these challenges, RHSC currently provides Early Intervention services to more than 300 children each year with a team of dedicated professionals.
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