Research supports online delivery

The first and most important thing is that families who have tried online delivery of early intervention services believe that they are effective.

There is a lot we already know from the evidence about online early intervention services.

Research has found that they:

Are equally effective as face-to-face services
Result in positive outcomes for the child
Provide flexibility
Engage and empower families
Increase family belief in their ability to parent their child

Right now, online early intervention services are a safe way to keep connected with the organisations who have been working with you to achieve positive outcomes for your child. We really encourage you to give online services a try!

You can follow up the research here in a study that concluded that Telehealth can be introduced to all families in Colorado because it works.

Cole, B., Pickard, K., & Stredler-Brown, A. (2019). Report on the Use of Telehealth in Early Intervention in Colorado: Strengths and Challenges with Telehealth as a Service Delivery Method. International journal of telerehabilitation, 11(1), 33. )

The article summarises that online services:

Necessitates and supports the use of family coaching strategies (Stredler-Brown, 2017). These strategies have been shown to increase family engagement and empowerment as families (Baharav & Reiser, 2010; Cason, 2011; Vismara et al., 2012).
Results in more active family engagement (Baggett, et al., 2010; Baharv & Reiser, 2010; Ingersoll, Straiton, Casagrande, & Pickard, 2016; Meadan & Daczewitz, 2015; Vismara et al., 2012), resulting in high levels of parent empowerment and self-efficacy, as well as positive child outcomes (Little et al., 2018; Vismara et al., 2012; Wainer & Ingersoll, 2015).
Parents indicated that services delivered via telehealth were “acceptable, useable, and effective according to Wainer and Ingersoll (2015),”
Provides increased flexibility for example, join in different routines
Equally effective as in-person services (Blaiser, et al., 2013; Falcone et al., 2018)
Families have positive perceptions of telehealth (Pickard, Wainer, Bailey, & Ingersoll, 2016).

For more research see https://www.publicconsultinggroup.com/news-perspectives/use-of-telehealth-in-early-intervention-idea-part-c-resources-to-consider-during-the-covid-19-public-health-emergency/