Professional Child Development Associates

I have two children on the spectrum and thanks to Dr.Rosemarie and Dr. Brant my kids have improved so much in one year .. all progress is good... they have helped me become a better special needs parent...and now my little one is also receiving speech therapy it seems we made the right choice in choosing this place for our kids needs.

Disappointed to be honest. Art "class" ended 10 minutes early almost every week. The 1st two sessions started at least 5 minutes late. It's hard to be comfortable with the fact that they're so comfortable taking your money but not giving the children at least a full hour each week. There was really nothing taught, it was more of a "here, paint/draw on this" kind of session. I'd consider it art therapy over art class.

It's unfortunate because we wanted to like this place. We expected a little more, but at least we gave it a chance.

We had a great experience with the speech therapist in this facility. She was wonderful with our son, and also communicated very efficiently with us which is very helpful.

Her final report was very detailed and also very clear. We were very pleased. The meeting time was perfect as well, we weren't rushed but it wasn't super long either compared to other places.

I recommend PCDA for your child's evaluations or developmental concerns.

The professionalism, communication, and business practices of PCDA leaves a lot to be desired to say the least! I will start by saying that we had a wonderful experience when we took our son there for occupational therapy about 7 years ago. Katy was awesome and unfortunately is no longer there.

My wife and I felt as if our son could benefit from a psychologist due to his being a bit behind socially. We decided to give PCDA a call based on our previous (OT) experience. When I called PCDA I was told to speak to Brandt Chamberlain about setting up an appointment. He wasn't available so I left a message. After he didn't call back in a month I left him another message. Once again no call back, left another message. About another month later (3 months from my initial call) I finally got Brandt on the line. He recommended a developmental team screening for my son to which i agreed. Upon passing me back (on the phone) to schedule my appointment he accidentally hung up on me causing me to have to call back.

I took my son to his developmental team screening which cost $300. I was told that they would write out the assessment and email it to me. When I didn't receive it in about 6 weeks, I called to ask what the hold up was. I was informed that everyone (speech and OT) had completed their assessment but they where still waiting on Brandt to finish his. Finally another almost 2 months later and a lot of phone calls on my part, we got our son's assessment. From my first call to receiving my son's assessment to almost half of a year.

Recommendations where for speech therapy for my son. I called and left a message with Juliet McNeil to make an appointment for my son's speech therapy. I never got a reply. After about 2 weeks I called back and left another message, and then another a week later. I finally received an email from Juliet telling me that she's been trying to call me. Somehow she had a wrong number. This confused me because I left my number 3 times on her voice mail. In her email she told me that my son would need an assessment for speech therapy. I asked her, "well didn't he already have that done?" I also asked if we could communicate via phone as the miscommunications and unanswered questions were getting out of hand via email. She avoided that question too. This is when i decided to take a chance and call. I say "take a chance" because it is impossible to get anyone on the phone over there. Low and behold, I got her on the phone. She continued to let me know that I could not schedule a speech therapy appointment unless my son has an additional assessment which cost $500. I asked her, "then what then did I pay $300 for the screening for?" She basically told me it was to help parents determine which direction to go with their child. This was not my understanding when I got the this initial screening. I explained that I felt like I was being gouged because another reputable speech therapy facility was able to immediately assess my child's needs and book an appointment.

So in the end, 2 of the key facilitators took well over 2 months (each) in some cases more, to get back to me. They charge you about $800 just to get an appointment, which obviously does not include the fee of the sessions. I felt like my time was wasted. They definitely weren't in any rush to give my son the treatment that he needed. To me an $800 fee just to get in the door is exorbitant. I feel gouged and uncared for. I do not wish this low standard of care and unprofessional establishment on anyone.

My son (diagnosed with HFA at age 3 1/2) started going to PCDA for speech therapy at age 4 when our other speech therapist moved out of state. Our therapist had 10+ years of experience with great experience. Our son also received feeding therapy there and had social skills classes there for a couple of years.

In addition, we had Dr. Cullinane, a wonderfully trained, experienced, talented and intuitive developmental pediatrician, perform a comprehensive evaluation of our son. This was after he had one done at UCLA (very weak) and another one by a supposed top developmental pediatrician in Beverly Hills. Dr. C went the extra mile in her evaluation. She conducted her first tests and meeting with him and then went to his preschool at Pacific Oaks and observed him at length, spoke with all his speech and occupational therapists, watched video of a speech therapy session, and provided an incredible report along with a meeting that helped me be the "team leader" in deciding what schools, services, etc that my son should provide.

Normally I would be suspect of a large place. But if you have a child with a developmental issue you will realize that having a 1 stop shop helps because they all talk to each other. The speech therapist talks to the OT who confer with Dr. C. They see it all.

In addition, they are vendors for the schools and Regional Center whereas some places do not want to take the discounted fee. I've been to places where the therapists are right out of school and don't have much experience. These therapists are well trained and the younger ones are well supervised.

My son is now an 8th grader. He's in regular classes at a top public middle school. He is not labeled at school and I believe the foundation -- especially the positive floortime model - has made him a happy, positive and socially appropriate kid. It's been a long ride but I have learned as much from my son as he's learned from me.

I also learned a great deal from the PCDA therapists. I modeled myself after them since they are well trained. I would see how they'd handle a situation (throwing something during speech therapy) and ask them about it . For example, the speech therapist would simply calmly say "go pick that up." I'd say why that and not "well the rule is that in speech you don't throw things." I was told - you don't want to negatively reinforce behavior. He is frustrated because he can't speak (he speaks very well now BTW) and we do not want to negatively reinforce especially since he may be hoping that if he throws a fit, he'll get to leave. They helped me be a mom/floortime therapist and I am so grateful for all I learned there.

Any selection of medical and other professionals is very personal. This was a terrific experience. But I also appreciated their honesty. They do not sugar coat things and that's because it's all about the kids. No place is perfect and there are times that mixed up appointments, difficulty parking & other things come up but they handle any issues very professionally. But what is great is their commitment to helping children. A wonderful asset to the medical and treatment community.

PCDA is a fantastic facility full of love and support! I am the nanny of a wonderful 3 year old with DS and I have been taking him to PCDA for therapy for over a year and his family has taken him there since he was a baby. We have had the privilege of working with several of the therapists on staff all of whom are well educated and dedicated to the healthy development of children. The support they offer extends to the family and caregivers of the children entrusted to them. I have worked with therapists from other organizations and the PCDA staff stands out as extremely dedicated! The staff has continuously gone above and beyond to help our little boy. I have spoken to other families in the waiting room and have never heard anything but praise towards PCDA! Truly, this is a safe place for those with developmental needs and their families!

I cannot stress to STEER CLEAR of this agency !! Perhaps , there are people who do truly care about children and their well being here , but my experience was short lived and really unnecessary. If you are a young , single - parent , you will be misjudged. Do not entrust your child to the facilitator, Mary. She will fabricate ludicrous stories and make false allegations resulting in a nice , surprise visit from Department of Social Services and your local sheriffs. I'm curious as to how many other parents have been through a similar ordeal here. I would love to swap horror stories as to what all took place and for any other potential client, please think twice before having your child take place in services and, definitely inquire within !!

I've been bringing my child here off and on for 17 years if you can believe that. They have been in three different locations. They have gotten very busy and it can be a challenge getting in and out of the parking lot since they are on busy Lake Ave and if you get there at the wrong time their fairly large parking lot is full. That being said, they are a wonderful professional organization. We have done social skills, teen club and continue in their wonderful music therapy program. All of their services are outstanding but music therapy has made the most dramatic impact on my child. Their entire staff is truly outstanding and very helpful.

As a testament to how wonderful I believe this organization to be, I'll start by saying that our family drives an hour each way once/week to PCDA despite the many therapy options we have in town. Our son has a very rare genetic disorder and an unbelievable number of allergies. Our OT, Katherine, and RD, Gloria, constantly go the extra mile to research and understand his condition and the options available to us. They have researched medical journals, made contact with our doctors, and when communication was failing with one of our current providers, they served as our advocates to get us in touch with another leading provider in the field. In the midst of a very trying season in our lives, the staff at PCDA has felt like our true advocates. Katherine follows up with emails throughout the week to check on our son's status while also providing other ideas for exercises we can try at home. On a regular basis, our son's file is reviewed with a multi-disciplinary team at PCDA to gain further possible insight beyond Katherine's assessment. She has never judged us as parents, and where there is room for improvement has offered wonderful advice. She has such a gentle heart and connects with children and parents with ease. Each week, they ensure the room and toys are thoroughly cleaned knowing that our son has a very low immune system and allergic reactions on contact. Though we have a long road ahead of us, I have no reservations that PCDA is where we need to be.