![\"Baby](\"http:\/\/veipd.org\/earlyintervention\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/Sleeping-baby-with-moms-hand-DS-300x225.jpg\")
You meet\u00a0the family of a newborn baby girl who has just been diagnosed with Down syndrome. You ask the baby’s father about how his daughter is doing and he replies that he doesn’t have any concerns because she’s perfect just how she is. He says he thinks she’ll be just fine. His wife fidgets as if she’s uncomfortable with what her husband\u00a0said but she appears to follow his lead and does not speak up. What do you say next?<\/p>\n
This can be a difficult situation for a service coordinator or provider because of what we know about developmental delays and risks associated with a child having Down syndrome. We can feel like we have a responsibility to “educate” the family about what could be\u00a0ahead regarding\u00a0the child’s development, but how do you do this while honoring the father’s\u00a0acceptance of\u00a0his\u00a0daughter? If the father is the decision-maker in the family, how do you respond and still honor the family dynamics?<\/p>\n
Do you launch into a description of developmental issues associated with the diagnosis?<\/strong><\/p>\n Do you ask the mother for her thoughts?<\/strong><\/p>\n Do you ask the\u00a0parents if\u00a0they really\u00a0are\u00a0interested in early intervention at this time?<\/strong><\/p>\n Share your ideas and thoughts!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" You meet\u00a0the family of a newborn baby girl who has just been diagnosed with Down syndrome. You ask the baby’s father about how his daughter is doing and he replies that he doesn’t have any concerns because she’s perfect just how she is. He says he thinks she’ll be just fine. His wife fidgets as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[139,10,16,19],"tags":[31,46,50,58,59,62,68,86,87,104,112],"class_list":["post-385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all","category-engaging-collaborating-with-families","category-service-coordination","category-what-would-you-do","tag-challenges","tag-development","tag-early-intervention","tag-families","tag-family-centered-practices","tag-home-visits","tag-infants","tag-parent-professional-partnership","tag-parents","tag-service-coordination-2","tag-strategies","clearfix"],"yoast_head":"\n