Mitzi Waltz's book, Pervasive Developmental Disorders: Finding Diagnosis and Getting Help is excellent. I feel it is comprehensive, yet brief, giving the reader an opportunity to learn about all aspects of the disorder.

As an occupational therapist working in a public school setting, there is one clarification I would like to make. In these trying times of litigation, I think it is extremely important that accurate information be available for parents and professionals in the field.

In the section on sensory integration, there is a misrepresentation of what it means to be certified in sensory integration. An occupational therapist can become certified to give the Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT) by taking several sequential courses offered through Sensory Integration International (SII)and recently some coursework is being offered at USC in conjunction with Western Psychological Services (publishers of the test).

An OT does not have to be certified to utilize sensory integration treatment strategies in therapy sessions with children. I would agree that continuing education in the area of sensory processing and sensory integration is important, but one can observe,assess and interpret behaviors using a sensory integration framework without administering the standardized SIPT.

This issue is important and the distinction clarifying what SI Certification means is important. Parents are requesting more sensory integration therapy for their children, by requesting someone who is certified can confuse the issue.

This issue of certification seems to have become quite the topic among OTs, especially since there now appear to be two camps, SII and USC/WPS.

In our school district, there are 6 OTRs on staff, all who have continuing education in sensory integration. One therapist is certified to administer the SIPT. If the team feels the SIPT will give the best information, he administers the test. In most cases however, the therapist on the team uses other tools such as the Sensory Profile, Sensorimotor Performance Assessment, Sensory Integration Inventory, and observations to assess sensory issues. In making decisions about the need for OT services, we may include sensory integration in our interventions, but it is not the sole frame of reference from which we base our decisions.

Although the book cannot be changed now, I would encourage the author to revisit this section for future editions.

I would appreciate these comments being shared with the author rather than as a review.

Thank you.
Nancy Miller, OTR