ABA Therapy Resources

Your child has been diagnosed with Autism. A medical provider made a recommendation for your child to get ABA therapy in the home and/or community. That’s great news because years of research and has proven that ABA therapy is the most effective therapy to help your child develop communication skills, social skills, adaptive skills, coping skills, and decrease any behavioral issues. It is a comprehensive therapy that requires a team effort from both, the provider and parent. You took the first step towards your child’s future by getting connected with an ABA company. Below is a list of ways you, as a parent can do to make ABA therapy more successful. Assessment Process: During the assessment process, a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) will come to your home to interview you and assess your child. It is important that you provide the BCBA will all information including how your child communicates, socializes, sensory issues, displays problematic behaviors, your daily routine, how you react to your child’s behaviors, medical conditions, current therapies, and past evaluations. If your child already had ABA therapy and it was unsuccessful, let your BCBA know what happened and talk about ways you feel the therapy can be more successful. Be honest about your goals for your child and your concerns regarding therapy. It’s important to identify any treatment barriers with your BCBA so you can find a way to overcome them. ABA Therapy Hours: ABA is a dosage dependent therapy. If all the prescribed hours are not utilized, your child may not make optimum progress. The BCBA will evaluate your child and prescribe the amount of hours needed to make the most progress. If your child is a toddler, BCBA may prescribe a comprehensive treatment plan, which is 25 to 30 hours. If your child is school aged, and receives services in school, BCBA may prescribe a focused treatment plan, which is 25 hours or less. The program and treatment plan will reflect the prescribed hours. ABA hours are like antibiotics, if the whole dosage is not taken, it might not be as effective or make behaviors worse, especially if maladaptive behaviors are severe and a prescribed treatment plan needs to be followed. I know this seems overwhelming. The good news is once your child makes progress, the hours will be faded out. Also, your ABA therapist can go to community outings with you so your child can work on safety skills, communication, and socialization within the community. You are able to get chores completed around the house while your child is getting services. Follow the Treatment Plan: Your child’s BCBA will create a treatment plan. The treatment plan will have antecedent strategies that state how to prevent or minimize a maladaptive behavior, and reactive strategies, that state how to react to the maladaptive behaviors once they occur. Sometimes the maladaptive behaviors will get worse before they decrease. This is called an extinction burst. This means that a behavior that was previously rewarded is no longer rewarded, and the behavior temporarily increases. It is important the everyone that interacts with your child follows the behavior plan in order for the problematic behaviors to decrease and for more adaptive behaviors to increase. If everyone is not on the same page, you may not see progress. Participate in Session and attend parent training: Watch and participate in session and attend parent trainings with your BCBA. Run your child’s programs outside of session for your child to generalize skills across locations, times of day, and people. You are with your child most of the day and each moment is a learning opportunity. Your clinical team will train you how to follow the treatment plan and make the most out of each opportunity for your child to practice skills and learn new adaptive behaviors. References: Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heyward, W. L. (1987). Applied behavior analysis. Columbus: Merrill Pub. Co. Chicago (Author-Date, 15th ed.). Behavior Analyst Certification Board (2012). Guidelines Health Plan Coverage of Applied Behavior Analysis Treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorder. Retrieved on 2/22/2021 from https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_electronic_sources.html

During these uncertain times, having ABA providers come to your home might seem scary. No one wants to expose themselves or their children to COVID-19. However, if you know that your child will benefit from ABA therapy, there are ways to minimize risk of exposure to COVID-19 while working with a provider for your child to get the services they need.   Here are some steps agencies ABA agencies should take in order provide families with a safe environment: Mask Mandate   An agency should have a mandated mask policy. That means all staff that come to your house must wear a mask. According to the The Center for Disease Control (CDC), a mask should completely cover nose and mouth and fit snuggle around the face. CDC does not recommend masks that are loose, has valves or vents, or is made of material with holes. The CDC also does not recommended substituting a shield for a mask. However, a shield can be worn in conjunction to wearing a mask. If a staff member does not follow the mask mandated protocol or is wearing an inappropriate mask, you have the right to cancel session and speak to his/her supervisor.   Protective Equipment Staff should be provided with protective equipment such as sanitizer, gloves for personal care, and a cleaning solution to clean surfaces. Staff should wash hands and/or use sanitizer that has at least a 60% alcohol base according to the CDC. Staff should also be trained regarding universal precautions regarding safely handling bodily fluids.   Screening Tools Before Each Session Each agency should have a screening tool that screens each employee and client for COVID-19 symptoms and possible exposure before the start of each session. The company should also have a policy of who to call if the employee or a client does not pass the screening such as calling a supervisor, canceling session, etc… If the family or staff member do not pass the screening tool, CDC guidelines should be followed such as screening for COVID-19, quarantining for 10 days, and following up with primary care physician.   Telemedicine You can also find out if telemedicine is an option. If your child is able to sit for zoom meetings for the school, s/he might be able to receive ABA therapy through telemedicine. Usually ABA therapy through telemedicine requires parent involvement. Some companies also offer telemedicine parent training and telemedicine supervision to the ABA therapist from the Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). This will decrease the number of people in your house. Questions to Ask When Calling an Agency Each provider is different and has different policies surrounding COVID-19. These questions will help you determine what precautions are taken by each agency. 1. What are they doing to keep employees and families safe? 2. what about their policies are surrounding possible exposure? 3. Are their employees required to wear masks? What kind of masks? Are they trained on how to wear the masks correctly? 4. Are they provided with protective equipment such as gloves, sanitizer, and sanitize? 5. Are employees and clients screened for COVID before each session? 6. Do they offer telemedicine for supervision and parent training sessions? Conclusion Unfortunately, risk of contracting COVID-19 cannot be 100% eliminated but agencies must do everything in their power to minimize it so your child can receive the help s/he needs. Client and staff safety should always be the number one priority.    

April is Autism Awareness Month! This month` is a very dear time for me because I silently celebrate all of the kids that I work and have worked with. Seeing progress and watching them do big things is what our field is all about. This is also the time where I learn about various famous people on the spectrum, who have greatly contributed to our society. Individuals on the spectrum make our world richer, add color, and contribute to our society. There are countless autistic minds and personalities that have made our world a better and more interesting place. I want to share with you some of my favorite famous individuals diagnosed with Autism:   Temple Grandin I had the pleasure of watching Temple Grandin speak a couple of years ago during a conference on her life and work. I have been a huge fan since. She is a professor of animal science in University of Colorado State University. She is an author of books called Thinking in Pictures and The Way I see It. She created system for cows to be slaughtered in a pain free and stress free way. In her early years, Temple was diagnosed with Autism and did not learned to speak until she was four years old. The doctor recommended institutionalization and told her mother that Temple had Autism due to “cold mother-daughter interaction”. Her family refused to institutionalize Temple and her mother worked with her to increase language and learn other skills. Today she is a prominent speak and educator on Autism and animal behavior.   Anthony Hopkins Anthony Hopkins is an award wining, amazing actor. I have watched every movie he has ever stared in. He is known for his role in “Silence of the Lamb” as Hannibal Lector. He was diagnosed with high functioning Autism later in life. He is known for his ability to memorize lines and immerse himself in the characters he plays. He is also an artist, and during this lockdown, has built his portfolio using acrylic paints and oils.   Courtney Love In middle school, I worshiped this rock goddess. Courtney Love was the front woman for the grunge band, Hole. My favorite songs were “Doll Parts” and “Celebrity Skin”. She was also known as Kurt Cobain’s Wife. He was Nirvana’s front man, who lost his life to suicide in 1994. She had a four decade career as an actress and singer. She revealed in her autobiography that she has mild Autism, and had to practice social skills and learn social cues. She stated her friends helped her practice her social skills by going to gay bars and interacting with different people.   Alexis Wineman Alexis Wineman was the first Miss America Contestant with Autism. She was diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder, which is on the Autism spectrum at age 11. She was bullied as a child and always felt different. She is the first known person on the spectrum to complete the Miss America pageant and an Autism advocate. She won the America Choice Award.   Albert Einstein I have been fascinated by this famous scientist since I was a child. Albert Einstein is the most famous scientist and mathematician, who discovered the theory of relativity. As a child, Einstein was not officially diagnosed with Autism, but he had a speech delay and displayed echolalia, where he repeated statements to himself. He was very technical. These symptoms led experts to believe that he was on the autism spectrum.