General

What ages and conditions do you work with?

We work with all ages and abilities! While we have extensive experience in a variety of musculoskeletal, neurological and developmental conditions, we prefer to focus on what a child can do rather than their specific diagnosis. This outlook allows us to be a fully inclusive team!

Does Ascend offer Meet & Greet Sessions?

We do! Once you are connected with one of our professionals, you can set up a 15 minute meet and greet call to discuss how you would like to see your services and ask any questions you have for the team member. If you feel like the team member is a great fit, you can move ahead with booking your initial session!

Why would a child see an Occupational Therapist?

Occupational therapists help children do the things they do everyday! This includes playing and going to school as well as day-to-day tasks such as self care (dressing, washing etc), eating and participating in activities with their family. Children struggling with attention, social skills, play, emotions, sensory regulation and following routines can benefit from OT intervention. Our OT’s love to participate in trainings and expand their skills, our team is ready to play and work with kid’s in many different areas!

Why would a child see a Speech Language Pathologist?

A speech-language pathologist (SLP) can help you and your child better communicate. SLPs can help diagnose, assess and/or help manage an array of language or communication needs. You may see a speech-language pathologist for many reasons including: if you or others are having difficulties understanding your child’s speech, if they are having difficulties expressing themselves or understanding you, if your child has a stutter or lisp, if they are a late-talker or, if they are having difficulties with social communication (like making conversation or taking turns while playing). An SLP can also help support and develop your child's literacy skills such as spelling, reading and writing.

Speech-language pathologists help children with many different needs including those with hearing impairments, autism, cerebral palsy and other genetic or intellectual disabilities.

Why would a child see a Psychologist or Behaviour Consultant (Social Worker)?

A Psychologist is a registered professional who offers behavioural therapy and counselling services. Some of our psychologists also offer assessment services for ADHD, cognitive learning, giftnedness, Autism, etc.

Our Social Workers are referred to as Behaviour Consultant at Ascend. A Social Worker is a registered professional who offers behavioural therapy and counselling services. Both of these professions can help families identify practical strategies to provide behavioural and emotional support for your child. They can also help your child expand their emotional awareness and process difficulties they may be experiencing.

My child needs behavioural therapy services - what is the difference between working with a Psychologist or a Behaviour Consultant (Social Worker) at Ascend?

Ascend has both Psychologists and Behaviour Consultants to provide behavioural therapy services. As with any registered professionals, the interventions and therapy modalities used may depend on the clinician’s own experience and approach to their work. Psychologists and Social Workers have different educational backgrounds, but all of our team members are registered Masters level clinicians and can provide these services for both private and FSCD contracts.

If you are pursuing services under an FSCD contract, it is important to know that only one Psychologist or one Behaviour consultant can be added to the contract for behaviour therapy.

Does my child need a referral to see a clild Psychologist, Speech Language Pathologist or Occupational Therapist?

Our team members are all primary health care providers, and do not require a referral to assess or treat your child. We often work collaboratively with family doctors and pediatricians. However, some insurance providers may require a physician’s referral for the session to be covered by extended health benefits.

What are your rates? Do you have a sliding-scale?

We do have an hourly rate for our professionals, which we try to aim for it to be within the the average pricing of the Calgary & surrounding area. Please see the pricing guide here! After a thorough review, we determined that it is best for us to have a flat session fee. A general session usually includes 1 hour of direct time with the child as well as our indirect time for session. Our professionals indirect time includes planning and documentation. Session planning and documentation is an average of 15 minutes to ensure that we meet the needs of the clients and their goals.

We do have a sliding scale available for families. Within our sliding scale program we accept the FSCD rate for families who are utilizing Ascend providers for a Developmental Behavioural Support and Specialized Services. If you have questions about this please call us at (403) 404-5767.

Do you take FSCD contracts? Do you provide home visits?

Yes! Families are welcome to use their FSCD funding to access our services. We are all approved service providers for FSCD and have completed all necessary training to support families within their FSCD contract. Ascend also offers an Aide program for families to expand those your service team! Check out our aide program here!

We would also like to note that we work with lots of different teams and all of our service providers love to connect with our community & private professionals to meet the needs of our clients.

What can I expect in my first session?

During the first session, your child’s therapist will ask about your child’s history, developmental milestones, schooling and participation in community activities if appropriate. Here at Ascend, our therapy sessions often look like play but we assure you that plenty of therapy is happening! We prefer all sessions to look like play, as it is the best way that children can learn! Your child’s therapist will outline a therapy plan and provide you with activities to address therapy goals.

Please note your first session is always 1 hour of direct service time.