it is really just speech delay?

I'm a single mom from the philippines. i have a son who's turning 3 this coming october. before he turned 2, he can say words like "dede" (filipino word for milk), "dedede" as what he called my dad and whenever he sees something that swings or something that moves he's like singing "dededede". during his early years, he doesn't seem to care if someone calls his name and he'll only respond to the television. it's like he was able to recognize the show, or the advertisements. now he responds whever i call his name. but i have to shout or raise my voice. there are times that we can hear him say "aah.. ahh.. " and it seems like he really wanted to talk but he can't. i've asked his pediatrician and he said maybe it was just speech delay. he gave referral to a speech therapist but when i went there, the nurses/assistants advised me that they only accept patients who have autism issues or those mentally retarded patients. I was advised to enroll my kid into pre-school instead. i am really bothered. my baby doesnt know anything, he can't even follow simple instructions. i really dont know what to do

[Shadowfluffy6]

he may have autism

[teddybears4ever2]

He may also have Apraxia of Speech.

[jdtm]

There are many levels of autism - have you considered the high functioning form of autism called PDD-NOS - pervasive developmental disorder - not otherwise specified?  Your son does remind me of our nephew and he was diagnosed with this form of autism.  Our nephew is doing very well now but it took a lot of help and innovative teaching ideas while in school.  All the best ....

[skepticalpeach]

I would definitely get him started in a preschool. Sometimes they have therapists on hand who can help him. To me it doesn't sound like he has autism. I'd consult with a speech therapist to see if it something else.