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Khaleej Times

Dubai: Early screening can cut therapy costs for neurodivergent children by 80%, experts say

When Dubai student Hoor arrived at special education school Sanad Village, she could not speak, respond, or make eye contact with her peers or adults. Now, after three-and-a-half years, the five-year-old will enter a mainstream school as a kindergarten student where she hopes to continue building on her love for music, dancing, and storytelling. Including her and her peers, Mayed and Omar, the institute has successfully re-integrated almost 60 students into mainstream schools. According to an expert, these stories are proof that early intervention could help neurodivergent children adapt well to the world around them. 'It helps the student to build those core skills that they require in order for them to become independent faster in their life,' said Mahmoud A. Mahmoud, Regional Clinical Director at Sanad Village. 'It opens up the door for learning more complicated skills like reading and writing and attending a school.' Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. He added that proper early support reduces the need for prolonged therapy in the long run — by as much as 80 percent in cost savings for families. It also opens up future employment opportunities, helping people of determination contribute meaningfully to society and the economy. Early indicators Gayatri Govind Gajjam, clinical psychologist at the newly launched Aster DYU Child Development Centre in Bur Dubai, said that learning disabilities often begin to show signs 'in early childhood, typically before the age of seven,' and they should be dealt with immediately. 'These early indicators are crucial as they provide an opportunity for timely intervention and support,' she said. 'Understanding these signs through a psychological lens helps in guiding children toward a more positive educational experience, offering them the resources they need to thrive academically.' She said that these difficulties were often unrelated to a child's intelligence and were an inability 'to process information, such as language, numbers, or spatial reasoning' in specific ways. The screening process typically involves a comprehensive evaluation to detect early signs and assess a child's cognitive, academic, emotional, and social development. 'We speak to teachers who provide valuable input regarding the child's academic performance and behavior and conduct a thorough review of the child's early development, family history, and any relevant medical background,' she said. 'We then use various cognitive and academic tests to assess specific areas of development.' Informed decisions According to Mahmoud, every child that they see is dealt with in an appropriate manner. 'For example, in the case of one of our children, Omar, the parents thought that he needed to be removed from a mainstream school and sent to Sanad,' he said. 'After we met him, we agreed with the parents. However, many times, the parents think that the child should go to a centre, but actually he should be staying at school or the other way around. So, we make informed decisions on a case by case basis.' He added that Sanad was not a diagnostic centre and only focused on therapeutic help instead. Gayatri gave the case study of a six-year-old, who was flagged by school during a routine screening for struggling with letter recognition. 'After a formal psychological evaluation, the child was diagnosed with dyslexia,' she said. 'With targeted interventions, including phonics-based instruction, the child showed significant improvement in reading fluency and classroom participation within six months.' Empowering the child One of the biggest challenges that practitioners in the region struggle with is stigma and fear. 'Many parents hesitate to screen their children due to fear of labelling,' said Gayatri. 'There is often a misconception that learning disabilities reflect low intelligence or permanent limitations. To address these concerns, we emphasise that early identification is about empowering the child with the necessary tools and support to succeed.' Mahmoud added that many parents he meets are in denial. 'We ask them to take the professional opinions, from any of the children's hospitals that has the capacity to diagnose the kids,' he said. 'They are trained on how to inform the parents, because it's very heavy news. From our side, we work with behaviours and what the child is lacking.'