Frequently Asked Questions
Still have questions? Contact Donna directly to discuss your child's needs, mentorship opportunities, workshop requests, or consultation services.
Parents & Families
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Many families seek Donna's support when they feel their child is capable of more but progress has stalled. With more than 35 years of experience, Donna is known for identifying the underlying reasons behind a child's challenges rather than simply addressing the symptoms.
She believes that before a child can learn, grow, or be challenged, they must first feel safe, connected, and understood. Through her ability to establish strong rapport and her expertise in sensory processing, emotional regulation, motor development, and child development, Donna strengthens the developmental foundations that support nervous system functioning, learning, confidence, and successful participation in everyday life.
As these foundations improve, children often demonstrate meaningful gains in attention, emotional regulation, coordination, social participation, independence, and overall functioning. Parents frequently say that one of the greatest benefits of working with Donna is finally understanding why their child has been struggling—and knowing how to support lasting success at home, at school, and beyond.
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Donna works with children, teens, and young adults who are experiencing challenges with sensory processing, emotional regulation, attention, ADHD, autism, feeding, motor development, handwriting, executive functioning, social participation, and independence in everyday activities.
She believes that every behavior and challenge has an underlying reason. Rather than focusing only on symptoms, Donna works to identify the developmental foundations that may be limiting a child's success. By strengthening these foundations, children often become more confident, capable, regulated, and successful at home, at school, and in their everyday lives.
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Many families seek Donna's support after their child has participated in therapy or school services but continues to struggle. Donna takes a fresh look to understand why progress has been limited, identifying the underlying developmental factors that may have been overlooked. Her individualized approach, combined with close parent collaboration, helps children build the skills and confidence needed for lasting success at home, at school, and in everyday life.
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Donna provides services in the home, school, and community, allowing therapy and consultation to occur where children learn, play, and function every day. She works with families in Florida and New York (seasonally). Virtual parent coaching, consultation, and mentorship services are available nationwide.
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Donna works with children from infancy through adolescence. While she supports a wide range of developmental needs, she is often sought out by families whose children are experiencing social-emotional, sensory processing, regulation, motor, feeding, or behavioral challenges that are impacting daily life.
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Services vary depending on the type of support requested, location, and time commitment involved. Please contact Donna directly to discuss your needs.
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Services are private pay. Upon request, documentation may be available for families wishing to pursue out-of-network reimbursement. Families are encouraged to contact their insurance provider directly regarding eligibility and benefits.
Getting Started
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A screening is often a helpful first step for families who are unsure whether occupational therapy is needed. It includes parent input, observations, and initial recommendations.
A comprehensive evaluation provides a deeper understanding of a child's strengths and challenges and may include standardized testing, caregiver interviews, clinical observations, and detailed recommendations for home, school, and therapy.
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Every child is unique, and therapy is individualized around their strengths, challenges, interests, and goals. Donna is known for her ability to quickly establish rapport and create a warm, trusting relationship where children feel safe, understood, and excited to participate.
Children rarely think of therapy as "therapy." Instead, they experience it as spending time with someone who truly understands them through play, movement, and meaningful activities. Many parents are surprised by how quickly their child connects with Donna and looks forward to coming each week. Children often seem to recognize that Donna understands them, creating the trust and connection that make growth possible.
Sessions may focus on sensory processing, emotional regulation, motor development, social participation, feeding, attention, executive functioning, independence, or other areas that impact everyday life. Every activity is thoughtfully designed to strengthen the developmental foundations that support nervous system functioning, learning, confidence, and successful participation at home, at school, and in the community.
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Absolutely. Donna believes parents are one of the most important factors in a child's success. Parents often gain a deeper understanding of their child's strengths, challenges, and behaviors while learning practical strategies that can be incorporated into everyday life. Her goal is not only to help children build skills, but also to empower parents with the insight and confidence needed to support long-term success.
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Progress looks different for every child, but many parents begin noticing meaningful changes within the first 6–8 sessions, although every child progresses at their own pace.
As therapy progresses, parents often notice improvements in attention, emotional regulation, confidence, social participation, motor skills, independence, and their child's ability to navigate daily challenges more successfully.
Perhaps just as importantly, parents gain a deeper understanding of their child and feel more confident supporting them. Donna works closely with families to identify meaningful goals, monitor progress, and ensure that therapy leads to positive changes both during sessions and beyond.
Evaluation & Therapy
Parent Coaching & Advocacy
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Parent coaching is a collaborative service designed to help parents better understand their child and feel confident supporting their development in everyday life. Rather than focusing only on the child, coaching provides parents with practical strategies, education, and individualized guidance to better understand why their child is struggling and how to respond in ways that promote growth, confidence, and success.
Many parents find that even small changes in their interactions, routines, and environment can have a meaningful impact on their child's participation at home, school, and in the community.
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No. Parent coaching can be valuable whether or not your child is participating in therapy. Some families are looking for guidance before beginning services, while others want support alongside school-based therapy or private therapy. Coaching can also be helpful for families who simply want a better understanding of their child's strengths, challenges, and developmental needs.
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Yes. Parent coaching is highly effective virtually and allows families to receive expert guidance from the comfort of their own home. Virtual sessions provide an opportunity to discuss concerns, review videos, problem-solve everyday challenges, and develop practical strategies that can be immediately incorporated into daily routines.
Many families share short videos of their child during everyday activities, including play, mealtimes, homework, routines, or challenging moments such as meltdowns. Donna also reviews videos of parents trying new strategies and provides individualized feedback and recommendations. This allows coaching to be based on real-life situations, making guidance practical, meaningful, and immediately applicable.
Many families appreciate the flexibility, convenience, and personalized support that virtual coaching provides.
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Absolutely. Many parents feel overwhelmed by evaluation reports, school recommendations, and special education meetings. Donna helps families understand assessment results, determine which recommendations are most appropriate for their child, prepare for school meetings, and make informed decisions about services, accommodations, goals, and supports.
With more than 35 years of experience collaborating with families, teachers, therapists, and school districts, Donna understands both the educational and clinical perspectives, as well as the complexities of the special education process. When appropriate, she also communicates directly with school staff, reviews school reports, and attends IEP and 504 meetings to help ensure everyone is working toward the same goals.
Her goal is to help parents feel knowledgeable, confident, and empowered to advocate for their child while fostering positive, collaborative relationships that support success at home, at school, and in the community.
Providers & Educators
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Providers often seek mentorship when they want more than textbook knowledge—they want practical guidance from someone who has spent more than 35 years helping children, families, therapists, and practices succeed.
Whether you're working through a challenging case, strengthening your clinical reasoning, developing more effective treatment strategies, navigating difficult parent or school situations, building a private practice, or simply looking for an experienced sounding board, Donna provides individualized guidance that can be applied immediately.
As Founder and Former Director of Westchester Therapy Solutions, Donna built and led a multidisciplinary practice of more than 70 therapists while mentoring hundreds of clinicians throughout their careers. Her goal is to help providers become more confident, effective, and fulfilled in their work—while reducing the stress, uncertainty, and isolation that can contribute to professional burnout.
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Mentorship is designed for providers at any stage of their career who want greater confidence, stronger clinical reasoning, and better outcomes for the children and families they serve.
Many providers seek mentorship when they feel stuck with challenging cases, struggle to understand why a child is not progressing, feel they are working hard but not seeing the level of progress they would like, experience impostor syndrome, or simply want additional support and guidance. New graduates often enter the field excited to help children but quickly discover that real-world practice can feel overwhelming and isolating. After investing years of education and significant financial resources into their careers, many want reassurance that they are on the right path.
Whether you are a student, new graduate, experienced clinician, or practice owner, mentorship provides a trusted sounding board, practical guidance, and clinical insight to help you become a more confident, effective, and fulfilled clinician.
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Mentorship is tailored to each provider's goals, experience level, and areas of interest. While some clinicians seek support with sensory processing, emotional regulation, autism, ADHD, feeding, motor development, parent coaching, or treatment planning, many find the most valuable discussions go beyond specific diagnoses or treatment techniques.
Donna helps providers strengthen their clinical reasoning by exploring the "why" behind a child's challenges, identifying missing foundational skills, improving engagement and motivation, navigating family dynamics, and developing treatment plans with greater purpose and confidence.
Whether discussing a complex client, building or growing a private practice, selecting equipment, designing a clinic, navigating difficult parents or school situations, or simply overcoming feelings of uncertainty, Donna's goal is to help providers think more clearly, feel more confident, and achieve better outcomes for the children and families they serve.
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Donna's mentorship goes beyond providing treatment ideas or recommending activities. Rather than simply telling providers what to do, she helps them understand why a child is struggling and how to think through complex clinical situations with greater confidence and clarity.
Drawing on more than 35 years of clinical experience, leadership, and mentorship, Donna helps providers strengthen their clinical reasoning, identify missing foundational skills, recognize patterns they may have overlooked, and develop treatment plans that are purposeful, individualized, and effective. Her goal is not simply to solve today's challenge, but to help clinicians become more confident, independent thinkers who can apply these skills throughout their careers.
Many providers report increased confidence, stronger clinical reasoning, improved treatment outcomes, and a clearer understanding of how to approach challenging cases. They value having a trusted mentor who can help them problem-solve, identify blind spots, and develop practical solutions that can be immediately applied to their work.
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Absolutely. One of Donna's greatest professional passions is helping students and new graduates bridge the gap between what they learned in school and the realities of clinical practice. Throughout her career, she has supervised students, mentored hundreds of therapists, and helped clinicians develop the confidence and clinical reasoning needed to achieve better outcomes.
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Yes. Most mentorship sessions are provided virtually, allowing providers and students from anywhere in the country to participate.
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Mentorship is individualized and designed around the provider's goals, experience level, and areas of interest. Sessions may include case consultation, clinical reasoning, treatment planning, professional development, business guidance, or discussion of specific challenges. Mentorship is currently offered on an individual basis, with additional opportunities being developed.
Professional Mentorship
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Having built Westchester Therapy Solutions over three decades—from a solo practice to a multidisciplinary team of more than 70 therapists—Donna understands both the rewards and the realities of growing a successful practice. She was actively involved in every aspect of the business, including hiring and mentoring clinicians, developing specialty programs, building referral relationships, creating systems, managing operations, marketing, and maintaining an unwavering commitment to clinical excellence.
The practice's growth didn't happen by chance. It was the result of thoughtful planning, creativity, strategic decision-making, and a willingness to continually adapt as new opportunities and challenges arose. Every stage of growth required learning, problem-solving, and finding innovative ways to meet the changing needs of children, families, therapists, and the community.
Today, Donna enjoys helping practice owners think through challenges, identify opportunities for growth, strengthen their teams, develop specialty programs, and build practices that are both clinically exceptional and financially successful. Her goal is not simply to help practices grow, but to help them become places where children receive outstanding care, therapists thrive professionally, and families feel genuinely supported.
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Yes. Drawing on decades of experience building and leading Westchester Therapy Solutions from a small private practice into a multidisciplinary organization of more than 70 therapists, Donna provides consultation to practice owners seeking guidance on clinical excellence, team development, program growth, and practice management.
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Consultation is tailored to your practice's needs and may include hiring and mentoring clinicians, clinical supervision, staff support / development, creating specialty programs, marketing practices, improving quality of care, workflow and operations, business growth, and developing a positive practice culture.
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Not at all. Whether you're just starting a private practice, expanding your services, or leading a larger multidisciplinary team, consultation is individualized to your stage of growth and goals.
Practice Growth & Leadership
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With more than 35 years of clinical experience and decades of mentoring therapists and leading a multidisciplinary practice, Donna provides engaging educational workshops for professionals, schools, and parent organizations. Audiences have included OTs, PTs, SLPs, educators, therapy practices, healthcare organizations, parent groups, SEPTAs, PTAs/PTOs, and community organizations. Her presentations combine practical strategies, clinical reasoning, and real-world examples that participants can immediately apply.
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Workshop topics are tailored to the audience and may include managing challenging behaviors, sensory processing, attention and executive functioning, emotional regulation, autism, ADHD, motor development, clinical reasoning, child development, professional mentorship/supervision, and practice growth.
Workshops can also focus on the real-world challenges providers face every day, including managing efficiency to get one’s work done, navigating difficult parent conversations, collaborating effectively with schools, increasing child engagement and motivation, preventing burnout, and strengthening clinical confidence.
Donna also enjoys developing customized presentations to meet the unique needs of schools, organizations, therapy practices, and community groups.
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Absolutely. Every audience has different goals, experience levels, and challenges. Donna works collaboratively with organizations to develop presentations that are relevant, engaging, and tailored to the specific needs of their staff, team, or community.
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Yes. Workshops can be presented in person or virtually and are available for organizations, schools, therapy practices, conferences, and parent groups.