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Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas Pediatrics Aims to do: Helping children and youth (birth to 18 years of age) with various physical, sensory, speech and communication challenges, articulation and stuttering, behavioural, emotional, and learning challenges.

We aim to provide timely access to private-pay in clinic (London and St. Thomas clinics available), in home and community, in schools/daycares, and virtually across Ontario.

Our services offer a holistic and integrated team approach based on evidence-based practices. We pride ourselves on building a place for children and their families to have access to a wide variety of pediatric services in the London and areas and St. Thomas and areas community. We also reach other surrounding communities in Southwestern Ontario to provide private pay as another option to the to the publicly funded services.

Thriving Kids offers opportunities for families who are otherwise waiting for publicly funded services in schools and in the community to have access to services at the right time, right place, right provider, for the child and their families.

Occupational therapists work in a variety of settings including in clinic, in home and community, in schools, and daycare settings. Occupational therapists work with children and youth who are displaying difficulties and/or delays in areas of their daily functioning. For example, these difficulties may be in areas of fine motor and printing abilities, gross motor play in catching and throwing a ball or climbing, running, and jumping, self-regulation and attention difficulties, organization difficulties including sensory dysregulation, as well as learning difficulties in comprehending and processing information as well as behavioural in terms of coping and mental and emotional health. At Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas Pediatrics, Occupational Therapy focuses on the whole child, their development, their unique individualized goals and challenges addressed by parents, caregivers, school educators, as well as other referrals to support services that may help to benefit the child. Occupational therapy focuses on helping children and youth with unique challenges and special needs to achieve their goals through life skills and functional and foundational skills. We believe in all abilities as well as the unique physical, emotional, and neurodiversity and what each person brings to their therapy sessions. Occupational Therapy focuses on working with children and youth in a wide variety of environments and by offering strategies and recommendations through either equipment, modified tasks, accommodations to help, and by collaboration with a team to help maximize a child or youth's potential in their daily occupations of life. This may also involve use of standardized assessment tools and questionnaires to help gather more information surrounding the current challenges and concerns. 'Occupations' of daily living are the meaningful tasks and activities we do on a daily basis that contributes to our overall quality of life, participation, and our productivity. Through early assessment and therapy intervention, occupational therapists can be an important step in helping to improve overall child and youth development contributing to their well being and engagement in normal activities of daily living.

Our Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) helps children and youth to find their voice, build confidence, and connect with the world around them.

At Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas Pediatrics, our Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologists provides compassionate, evidence-based assessment and therapy for infants, children, and adolescents experiencing communication, speech, language, feeding, or social communication challenges.

We believe every child deserves the opportunity to communicate with confidence and reach their fullest potential.

Our Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) works closely with families to develop individualized treatment plans that build on each child’s unique strengths while addressing their areas of need.

Therapy is engaging, play-based, and goal-oriented, empowering children to develop meaningful communication skills in a supportive environment.

Our services may include assessment and treatment for:

-Speech sound disorders (articulation and phonological disorders)

-Language delays and language disorders

-Early communication development

-Social communication and pragmatic language skills

-Childhood apraxia of speech and motor speech disorders

-Fluency disorders (stuttering)

-Voice and resonance concerns

-Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

-Feeding and oral motor difficulties

-Literacy and early pre-reading skills

When determining if a child or youth needs Occupational Therapy (OT) or Speech Language Pathology (SLP), it is important to know if they are experiencing difficulties in areas of fine motor, gross motor, sensory, learning, emotional, or behavioural domains, or speech and language concerns including their communication (receptive and expressive) and how they articulate their sounds and words.

If children or youth are experiencing daily challenges in any of these areas (as mentioned above) and it is affecting their overall function and participation, productivity, and functioning then occupational therapy (OT) and/or SLP would be an option to consider for booking an assessment to determine next steps and if intervention is needed. Many times both OT and SLPs work together collaboratively to help children achieve their goals. We believe in an integrated team approach as we are better together. Children can benefit from integrated healthcare in Pediatrics to achieve their full potential.

Parents, educators, and caregivers can self-refer. We don’t need any doctor’s referral.

Complete the intake form on the Thriving Kids website and we will give you a complimentary call.

Credit Card or VISA-Debit. A valid Credit Card must be kept on file.

This is discussed with the client and their family during the first initial assessment visit and would be included in the Consent to Collect, Use, and Share Personal Health Information during the consent process. The occupational therapist and Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) would need written or verbal consent in order to share any personal health information with others.

All therapy services provided at Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas Pediatrics is a private-pay service and therefore not covered by OHIP. Families can access their own extended health benefits or other funding to help cover the costs associated with private pay therapy services. Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas Pediatrics does not direct bill to Extended Health Benefits.

Thriving Kids London/St. Thomas OT and SLP initial assessments are offered as 2 separate appointments on different dates and total $465. This does not include a report. Add ons may be requested by the family such as Assessment Reports.

*Home and community visits will accrue a travel time fee (round trip) and will be discussed by the Therapist upon booking.*

*In-clinic visits will be either at the Nixon Medical Centre on the 3rd floor in London or at the St. Thomas clinic (230 First Avenue, suite 107).

Please call or text your therapist upon arrival to the London or St. Thomas clinic to let them know you have arrived.

Yes. Appointments cancelled less than 24 hours in advance of a scheduled appointment will be charged at the full rate.

*Please note that for Monday cancellations, our staff will need to be notified by the end of the business day on Friday (by 7:00pm).

Cancellations made over the weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) including statutory holidays will still be charged at the full rate, as our staff are not checking their emails/texts over the weekend or stat holidays.

Thank you for your understanding.

-Fine motor printing and writing difficulties, holding a pencil, scissor cutting, using both hands for motor planning and eye-hand coordination.

-Strengthening of the hand, wrist, and arm needed to improve fine motor coordination at school as well as daily activities of living including dressing, bathing, toileting, grooming.

-Gross motor concerns surrounding walking, running, jumping, climbing, playing indoors and outdoors on climbers and playgrounds, difficulty with muscle strength and coordination, including motor planning, balance, and spatial awareness

-Seeking, avoiding, or missing sensory information in the environment and sensory processing difficulties and concerns (visual, auditory, touch, body awareness, vestibular, planning)

-Learning self care skills including eating, dressing, toileting, bathing, grooming

-Challenges surrounding morning routines, evening routines, sleeping and inability to focus to stay on task with becoming distracted easily and/or unorganized with routines

-Social and play difficulties including difficulty playing with others

-Learning or processing difficulties at home or at school

-Behavioural or emotional difficulties at home or at school

-Need for environmental changes, organization of spaces in the home to promote self regulation and to address sensory challenges. Need for possible sensory equipment in home or in the community.

-Physical barriers and need for physical equipment and modifications to help promote independence and accessibility.

Who Can Benefit from Speech Therapy?

Speech-Language Pathology may benefit children who:

 -Are not meeting expected speech or language milestones

-Have difficulty being understood by others

-Struggle to follow directions or understand language

-Have limited vocabulary or difficulty forming sentences

-Experience stuttering or disrupted speech fluency

-Have feeding or swallowing concerns

-Need support using AAC or other communication systems

-Have communication challenges related to Autism Spectrum Disorder, developmental delays, or other medical conditions

-Early assessment and intervention can make a meaningful difference in a child’s communication, learning, confidence, and social development.

Yes, we are recognized as a reputable OAP provider in Ontario.

Yes, we are well known in the community. Heather Harris, Clinical Director and our Owner and Founder of Thriving Kids, has developed many community connections since opening her practice in 2023. You can find her and her Thriving Kids team providing education to students at the School of Occupational Therapy at Western University in London Ontario, as well as taking on student OTs for placement every year.