Sunshine Kids Team A

History

In response to the 2015 Policy Address to expedite the provision of pre-school rehabilitation services for children with special needs, Tung Wah Group of Hospitals started the trans-disciplinary services – Sunshine Kids – in January 2016 to provide On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services (OPRS) for children who are attending our partner pre-schools, including all Tung Wah nursery schools and kindergartens. We are currently operating 6 service teams, offering 635 places in over 50 partner schools.

In 2020, Tung Wah was invited to join the Pilot Project on Tier 1 Support Services in Kindergartens/ Kindergarten-cum Child Care Centres to provide early intervention to children awaiting assessment by Child Assessment Centres (CACs) or assessed by CACs to have borderline developmental problems. The service was regularized in September, 2023 and integrated with OPRS. In the same year, to echo the “Zero Waiting” policy, the service teams launched the OPRS Waitee Services to provide transitional support to children registered and wait-listing for OPRS under the Central Referral System for Rehabilitation Services – Subsystem for Disabled Pre-schoolers (CRSRehab-PS).

Over the years, the Sunshine Kids’ transdisciplinary service has developed into a school-based integrated pre-school rehabilitation service providing comprehensive and timely support to children with various levels of special needs.

Objective

• To provide early identification and early intervention for preschool children with special needs or signs of special needs.
• To enhance the learning and development of these children through optimizing their learning environment, enhancing their healthy growth and supporting their caregivers and schools.

Facilities

The intervention services are mainly conducted on-site at Kindergartens/ Kindergarten-cum Child Care Center such that children learn in their most familiar environment. This facilitates the children to generalize their learning in their daily routine. However, on need basis, some of the training will be conducted at our facility-rich centres. Most of which are equipped with physiotherapy room, sensory integration room, speech therapy room, multi-purpose rooms and parent resources area.

We also have a mobile training van to provide trainings close to the service users’ homes/schools.

Service Recipients

Children below six years old and studying at one of the Sunshine Kids’ partner kindergartens or kindergarten-cum-child care centres, as well as their teachers, child care workers, parents and carers.

On-site Preschool Rehabilitation Services

• Upon receiving assessment by qualified professionals recognized by SWD; and referred by social workers of designated service units recognized under CRSRehab-PS for OPRS.

Tier 1 Support Services

• Wait listing for assessment by Child Assessment Centres (CACs), or
• Assessed by CACs to have borderline developmental problem, or
• Assessed by the OPRS team as having special needs with reference to the “Child Observation Checklist” (COC).

OPRS Waitee Services

• Wait listing in CRSRehab-PS for OPRS, except:
• Waiting for or receiving other subvented pre-school rehabilitation services; or
• Receiving “Training Subsidy Programme for the children on the Waiting List of Subvented Pre-school Rehabilitation Services”