Reassessment on the development of children with disability in Malaysia

This is a cohort study investigating the profile of children with disability registered with the primary health care clinics in Malaysia. The purpose of the study was to determine whether reassessment on the development of children with disability under rehabilitation should be done at three months interval or six months interval. Secondary data from the pilot project conducted by the Family Health Development Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia was used in this study. The study was carried out for seven months from 1st August 2004 until 28th February 2005. A total of 168 disabled children followed up for six months were selected in this study. Schedule of Growing Scale (SGS) II was the tool used for analysis. Results showed a statistically significant difference in the mean total SGS score at six months interval but not at three months interval. The result suggests that reassessment on children with Down Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, mental retardation and delayed speech under rehabilitation should be carried out every six months while children with gross developmental delay and slow learner might need a longer interval for reassessment.