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ABA THERAPY
WHAT IS ABA?
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is an evidence-based practice that has been shown to be highly effective in teaching children with Autism Spectrum Disorder the skills they require to lead independent and productive lives. Through the use of techniques such as Discrete Trial Teaching, Shaping, Positive Reinforcement, Teaching in the Natural Environment, and others, we are able to help children learn a variety of skills.
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Your child will work one-on-one with their trained behavior technician on individual and group skills in an age-appropriate setting.
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Their therapy will be monitored by their assigned Board Certified Behavior Analyst or BCBA. The BCBA will meet with you regularly to plan the goals and monitor the progress of the child. The BCBA will also guide the parents in education about autism and ABA so the child can be successful in their home, school, and other environments.
OUR STEP BY STEP PROCESS
Finding out your child has an Autism Spectrum Diagnosis can be overwhelming. At Strident Healthcare, we’re here to help guide you through the process. After your child has completed an ADOS with a psychologist and has received a formal diagnosis, your path will look like this:
1
INITIAL PHONE MEETING
Your first step will be to contact one of our friendly care administrators. Our care administrator will take down all of the necessary information to verify your insurance coverage for ABA services for your child.
2
SUPPORT COORDINATION
After your insurance has been verified, the care administrator will schedule your child for an initial skills assessment with a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). Your assigned BCBA will be the individual creating a treatment package tailored to your child’s specific needs.
3
START OF SERVICE
A start of service meeting will be conducted after the formal report has been completed and a final schedule has been submitted for services for the hours you would like your child to have therapy. At this meeting you will review the treatment plan your BCBA has created. At this time the BCBA will also begin on-going training and supervision on your child's plan with the Behavior Technician to be providing services with your child.
4
ON-GOING SUPPORT
Your BCBA will meet with you regularly to ensure progress with therapy and provide on-going education and support about autism and ABA.
5
SKILLS ASSESSMENTS
Per most insurance companies the individualized treatment plan will be updated and a skills assessment will be completed to track your child's progress approximately every six months.
ABA BENEFITS
Children who receive intensive ABA treatment make larger improvements in more skill areas than do children who participate in other interventions (Vismara & Rogers, 2010).
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The parents of the children who receive intensive ABA report greater reductions in daily stress than do parents whose children receive other treatments (Vismara & Rogers, 2010).
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Several long-term, large-scale controlled studies have demonstrated that children who receive more than 25 hours per week of ABA make tremendous gains, with some participants achieving functioning within the average range for their age, after a year (Granpeesheh, et al., 2009).
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Comprehensive applied behavior analysis interventions are associated with significantly improved outcomes relative to public education services after a 2 year period (Zwaigenbaum, et al., 2015).
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Research has shown that virtually all areas of human functioning are affected in a positive way for older children with autism who participate in ABA (Granpeesheh, et al., 2009).
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"Children who are completely non-verbal who begin intervention in the early pre-school years are far more likely to become verbal" (Koegel, 2000).
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"Research today shows that fewer than 10% of individuals with ASD will remain non-verbal with intervention" (Koegel, 2000).
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"Early intervention increases the likelihood of improved long-term outcomes" (Koegel, Koegel, Ashbaugh, Bradshaw, 2014).
Disruptive behaviors exhibited by children with ASD are often avoided, reduced, or eliminated, with early intervention focused functional communication (Koegel, Koegel, Ashbaugh, Bradshaw, 2014).
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"Untreated symptoms of ASD become more abundant and severe later in life, requiring more costly interventions" (Koegel, Koegel, Ashbaugh, Bradshaw, 2014).
After 4 years of intensive behavioral treatment 48% of participants showed rapid learning, achieved average post-treatment scores, and were succeeding in regular education classrooms.*
*Sallows, Glen O., and Tamlynn D. Graupner. “Intensive Behavioral Treatment for Children With Autism: Four-Year Outcome and Predictors.” American Journal on Mental Retardation, vol. 110, no. 6, Nov. 2005, pp. 417–438., doi:10.1352/0895-8017(2005)110[417:ibtfcw]2.0.co;2.
