There is pressure, when a child is three and not talking, to start something immediately. Every parent feels it. Most centres will oblige — a package can begin on Monday.
We will not, and this is the reason.
A label is not a diagnosis
“Autism” describes a pattern of difficulties. It does not tell me whether this child’s speech is delayed because they are not yet attending to people, or because they attend perfectly well and the motor planning for speech is not there, or because a hearing problem was never excluded, or because a seizure disorder is interrupting learning in a way no one has noticed.
Those four children might all be called autistic. They need four different programmes. Start all four on the same package and three of them will make poor progress, and the conclusion everyone draws will be that the child is severe.
What our assessment is for
It is not a form. It is a process designed to produce three usable things:
What is actually happening, and why. Your child’s developmental profile, where the processing breaks down, and what medical causes have been considered and excluded. Where investigations are warranted, we say so and explain why; where they are not, we say that too rather than ordering tests to look thorough.
Where your child is now, written down. Not as a score to file — as the baseline every later decision is measured against. This is the thing that makes it possible, in six months, to answer “has this worked?” with evidence rather than impression.
What to do on Tuesday morning. The specific strategies for this child, at the level they are working at now, in language you can act on.
“But we are losing time”
This is the real fear, and it deserves a straight answer. The assessment is not a delay in front of the treatment. It is the part that decides whether the next twelve months are spent on the right thing. Families who skip it do not save time — they spend a year finding out, which is the most expensive way to learn it.
Dr Rahul Bharat leads the clinical work at every Geniuslane centre. The local team takes the history and knows your family; the diagnostic thinking is the same wherever you come to us.
In Delhi: first appointments at Janakpuri West. Bring any previous reports, school observations and a list of anything your child is taking. Book an appointment