As a mental health consultant and founder of Together We Can, I provide crucial advice for parents selecting therapists and centers for their children with disabilities. Emphasizing SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Answerable, Relevant, and Time-bound—I outline how parents can ensure optimal care. Parents should seek professionals who support tailored programs, measure progress, are answerable and respectful, and transfer skills to parents. Additionally, parents must become informed and proactive caregivers by seeking understanding, measuring progress, asking questions, reading about their child’s disability, taking responsibility, expecting progress, and adopting a rights-based approach. By following these steps, parents can significantly improve the therapy experience and outcomes for their children with disabilities.
