Diagnostic panel

In many services, the specialists who saw your child do not decide alone: the case goes to panel Panel A meeting where professionals decide things like funding or a place on a waiting list. Parents are not in the room, but you can still ask how a decision was made. Read the full definition of Panel , a discussion between several professionals, sometimes called a multi-disciplinary or MDT discussion, where the team weighs everything gathered and agrees the outcome. It can take weeks for a case to reach a panel date, which is often why there is a long quiet gap after the last appointment.

You cannot usually attend, but you are not shut out of what it decides. Afterwards you can ask for the outcome in writing, the reasons behind it, a copy of the report, and a record or summary of what was discussed about your child. If the panel decides against a diagnosis, you can ask what the evidence showed, what the service's process is for reviewing the decision, and whether a second opinion second opinion Asking to have your child seen by a different team when you do not agree with the outcome of an assessment. You can ask, and asking is normal. Read the full definition of second opinion is possible through your GP GP Your family doctor. For many families the GP is the first person to talk to, and the person who refers your child on to a specialist. Read the full definition of GP .