I would not recommend ABA Therapy Services at Westside Children's Therapy in Elmhurst, IL. Prior to starting services, I made it clear to Allison (Aba director) that I wouldn’t be able to pay out-of-pocket if my insurance didn’t cover the full cost. She reassured me that my son was fully covered for the year and that I didn’t need to worry. While I understand it's our responsibility to verify coverage, I also expect clear communication from the clinic regarding any changes or gaps in coverage.
Unfortunately, my son did not show any progress. He has received therapy at other clinics where improvements were evident within a couple of weeks, but at this clinic, it felt like they were doing the same things other programs do, focusing on what’s more profitable rather than tailoring therapy to the child's actual needs. The therapists seemed disengaged, and my son was often bored, repeating the same activities for weeks on end.
Additionally, the clinic started to develop an unpleasant odor when I dropped him off, which I initially thought was temporary—but it wasn’t. Around the same time, my son began getting sick frequently, which I suspect was linked to the clinic’s lack of attention to cleanliness and hygiene. After he became seriously ill, it took him over three months to fully recover, so I stopped sending him.
Communication was also poor. In the beginning, there was some communication, but after the first couple of weeks, I had to follow up repeatedly just to get updates on his progress. On top of that, I noticed he was marked as present on certain days when he hadn’t attended at all.
My son has a restrictive diet, and I made it clear to the RBT and the director that he needed his safe foods. Despite this, they never communicated about his food needs, and he would often be starving by the time we left the clinic. At one point, I was even handed a child who wasn’t mine when picking him up.
What’s most frustrating is that it felt like the clinic was more focused on making money than actually meeting the child’s needs. ABA centers should prioritize the child’s well-being over profits. I’m also still receiving invoices, even though our insurance paid over $10,000 for less than two months of services.
Overall, I’m extremely disappointed and would not recommend this clinic to others.