2018 Webinars

We are pleased to announce our list of webinars for 2018! Our courses include the supervision course for those of you who need 3 hours in supervision. We also offer the 8-hour supervision course for those of you who need to supervise others in the profession. We are also offering several ethics courses including our most popular SPED Law and Ethical Issues for Behavior Analysts, Ethical Issues in Billing, and Ethical Issues in Completing FBAs and Developing BIPs.

Don’t forget, we offer group rates for individuals who share a computer or for 3 or more individuals from the same organization.

Please visit our website for additional information and to register.

Hope to “see” you in one of our upcoming courses!

ABS 2018 Webinars 10.18.17

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The Very Busy BCBA

The field of behavior analysis is growing. This is due in part to:

1. International Board Certification in Behavior Analysis (www.bacb.com)
2. Increased insurance legislation mandating coverage of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) (http://www.autismspeaks.org/advocacy/states)
3. Increased behavioral needs of all children

Demand

Because of these, and other reasons (e.g., CT has a law requiring BCBA {or similar} supervision of some school programs), BCBAs are hot commodities. Check out Craig’s List in your area and count how many companies are hiring behavior therapists and/or behavior analysts. Agencies will pay top dollar for a highly qualified and experienced BCBA. In fact, a recent email went out to certain BCBAs advertising up to $125,000 annually for a BCBA on the east coast.

Overworked?

Recently the Behavior Analysis Certification Board, produced two important documents. You can read more about them here and here. Essentially, the Board described expectations for supervisors regarding case loads and professional duties. Supervising the provision of ABA services requires on-going and regular contact with the client and therapists on the team. To do this well, BCBAs should maintain a small case load. If the BCBA has a BCaBA to assist with some duties then additional clients may be served. The bottom line is that clients need regular contact and supervision of the program.

In some instances, an agency may hire a BCBA and expect the BCBA to provide all the services for the clients or students within the agencies. For example, numerous school districts hire one BCBA to cover the entire caseload of special education students. The end result is poorly supervised ABA programs and a BCBA who is unable to fulfill his/her job duties effectively.

Important Personal Duties

In addition to all the professional duties required, BCBAs must also tend to multiple personal duties. These include:

• maintaining certification
• completing continuing education credits
• registering for and attending conferences
• reading and keeping up with the professional literature

During the course of the continuing education webinars provided by Applied Behavioral Strategies, LLC (an approved BACB provider), BCBAs seem to be so busy that they:

• don’t have time to check their email
• forget to include important documentation such as BACB certification number
• forget to come to the webinar

Yes, BCBAs are so busy that they forget to come to a webinar that they have paid for and one that they need in order to maintain their certification.

So, slow down, organize yourself, make priorities, and do not overextend yourself. You owe it to your clients and you owe it to yourself.

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ABA Supervision Part 2

Hi and welcome to Ask Missy Mondays where I respond to a question from readers. Today’s post is a follow-up to a previous post on Supervision where Karen had asked “what are the rules on ABA supervision?”

Recently, the Behavior Analysis Certification Board (BACB) issued a document related to practice guidelines. While the practice guidelines are specifically related to the provision of ABA services for individuals with autism, readers are provided with clarity regarding the supervision expectations for clients.

The BACB has this to say about on-going supervision of ABA services:

“Although the amount of supervision for each case must be responsive to individual client needs, 1-2 hours for every 10 hours of direct treatment is the general standard of care. When direct treatment is 10 hours per week or less, a minimum of 2 hours per week of clinical management and case supervision is generally required. Clinical management and case supervision may need to be temporarily increased to meet the needs of individual clients at specific time periods in treatment (e.g., intake, assessment, significant change in response to treatment).

A number of factors increase or decrease clinical management and case supervision needs on a shorter- or longer-term basis. These include:
• treatment dosage/intensity
• client behavior problems (especially if dangerous or destructive)
• the sophistication or complexity of treatment protocols
• the ecology of the family or community environment
• lack of progress or increased rate of progress
• changes in treatment protocols
• transitions with implications for continuity of care

Within the same document, the BACB discusses case loads for BCBAs. Specifically, they suggest:

• The average caseload for one (1) Behavior Analyst supervising comprehensive treatment without support by a BCaBA is 6 – 12.
• The average caseload for one (1) Behavior Analyst supervising comprehensive treatment with support by one (1) BCaBA is 12 – 16. Additional BCaBAs permit modest increases in caseloads.
• The average caseload for one (1) Behavior Analyst supervising focused treatment without support of a BCaBA is 10 – 15.
• The average caseload for one (1) Behavior Analyst supervising focused treatment with support of one (1) BCaBA is 16 – 24.
• As stated earlier, even if there is a BCaBA assigned to a case, the Behavior Analyst is ultimately responsible for all aspects of case management and clinical direction. In addition, it is expected that the Behavior Analyst will provide direct supervision 2-4 times per month.

Keep in mind that these recommendations are related to comprehensive programs for children with autism.

We hope this helps to clarify our previous suggestions about supervision of ABA programs. We applaud the BACB for providing these guidelines that will prove helpful to behavior analysts, parents, and school district staff alike.

 

 

 

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How Much ABA Supervision is Necessary?

Hi and welcome to Ask Missy Mondays where I respond to a question from readers. Today’s question comes from a parent who is a regular reader (and poster) on our blog. Thanks Karen for your loyalty. Karen asks:

“What are general rules regarding supervision of the individual that provides ABA services?

How much oversight is required?

Is Supervision provided through data collection or intermittent on site visits?

How many students can the BCBA supervise ?

How is supervision validated?”

Thanks for stopping by our blog again! We love having repeat visitors.

BCBA  Supervision Rules

We have different rules for supervision depending on who we are supervising.

Supervising a BCBA in Training

If we are supervising someone who is training to become a BCBA the board requires us to supervise them a minimum of 2 hours every other week. This process is very long and can take up to 2 years. In addition to the on-going supervision we provide to those in training, we have to complete a form each time we supervise the person. Additional information on this type of supervision may be found here.

Supervising a BCaBA in Training

We have strict rules for providing supervision to a student who is trying to become a BCaBA. This process is also lengthy and requires written feedback. Rules for this type of supervision may be found here.

Supervising a certified BCaBA (on-going)

If we are supervising a practicing BCaBA, we have different rules.The board requires only one hour per month of this type of supervision. However, annually, “at least two of these monthly supervision sessions shall be conducted in-person, to include direct observation of actual service provision with individuals”. Additional information may be found here.

Supervision of Non-Certified Implementers

Finally, our organization lacks specific requirements for supervising staff who implement our programs. We have an ethical duty to make sure that programs are being implemented appropriately. Depending on how much ABA a client is receiving, supervision needs would vary. For example, if a child is receiving 40 hours per week of ABA therapy, more supervision would be needed (2-4 hours per week) but if someone is only receiving 10 hours of therapy per week, they may receive only 1-2 hours per week of supervision. For a detailed list of our guidelines for responsible conduct including supervision recommendations click here.

How is Supervision Provided?

Supervision may be provided a number of ways. Obviously, face to face supervision, where the supervisor is watching the implementation, is ideal. However, this is not always possible. Thus, other types of supervision may be provided. Supervisors may watch live video feed, they may watch previously recorded video, they may have sessions over Skype or other similar technology (we use WebEx for privacy purposes).

How Many People Can a BCBA Supervise?

As supervisors, we have to carefully build our caseload so that all of our clients receive appropriate services. Again, there is no minimum number to follow. We have our guidelines for responsible conduct that we should follow. There are only so many hours in the day. While many people burn the candle at both ends, it is difficult to provide supervision while clients are sleeping. Thus, case loads should be reasonable. When I worked for a large provider, it was common for individuals to have 14-15 clients on their caseload.

How is Supervision Validated?

Supervision is validated in a number of ways. We prefer to use the feedback form during formal supervision. However, if the implementers are not seeking certification, it is not uncommon to provide supervision without written documentation. For example, yesterday, I provided supervision to staff for about 30 minutes regarding a client at his school. We did not document the session because neither implementers is seeking certification.

Additional Resources

Supervision is a tricky issue. Your questions are completely appropriate. Please feel free to visit other sources of support.

1. The Behavior Analysis Certification Board http://www.bacb.com
2. The Association for Professional Behavior Analysts  http://www.apbahome.net
3. The Association for Behavior Analysts International http://www.abainternational.org

Concerned?

If you have concerns about the supervision your child receives, be sure to address it with the BCBA who is responsible for your child’s case. In some instances, the supervision may be limited to funding. If you want more supervision than is funded, consider paying for additional supervision. Perhaps additional staff should be brought on to help (e.g., I’m seeking a BCBA to assist me with cases). Finally, if you cannot get the issue resolved, consider asking for a new BCBA or report the individual to the BACB. You will need extensive documentation but it may result in more appropriate supervision for your child.

We hope that helps.  And of course, come back and visit us often!

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