B³ Process

Families come to B³ to get assistance with their child who may be experiencing behavioral challenges or who have received a diagnosis of autism, down syndrome, or other pervasive developmental disorder.  They have been referred to us by a professional such as a developmental pediatrician, a speech therapist, a teacher, or parents who are receiving services from B³ for their own child.  In fact, most of our families come to us as referrals from other families who currently work with B³.  Funding for services come from either Regional Centers or is privately funded.

Once a family has contacted us, the clinic director Anki Sjolund or one of the clinic supervisors meet with the family to determine their overall goals and to determine if B³ can help the family reach those goals.  Once it has been determined that B³ can meet a family’s needs, a program coordinator is chosen to address the family’s needs in greater detail.

First, a functional behavioral assessment is conducted.  The purpose of the functional behavioral assessment is to determine the child’s strength and weaknesses and the reasons why he or she may engage in challenging behaviors.  This assessment involve direct observations of the child’s behavior and the family’s responses to such behaviors in various locations including home, school and community settings such as stores and restaurants, interviews with family members and other professionals such as teachers, speech therapists, and occupational therapists, review of records, and direct contact with the child for the purposes of a skill assessment and analyses of reasons for reported behavioral concerns.  The assessment typically takes up to 3 months to complete.  The outcome of a functional behavioral assessment is an overall understanding of the functioning level of the child, reasons for challenging behaviors, and the interactional patterns that exist between the child and the rest of the family.  Thus, the family gets a better understanding of why the child may engage in behaviors that pose a great challenge to them and they also learn what skills the child must be taught to decrease the need for such behaviors.  Once this information is obtained a behavior change and skill acquisition program is designed for the child and the entire family.

Following the assessment, a behavior intervention program is designed.  The program may be designed to support the child in a school setting or at home.  For school support, programs are designed in collaboration with teachers with the ultimate goal of independent functioning in the classroom in mind.  Therefore, a major focus of our school interventions is on increasing the child’s responses to cues that occur naturally in the school setting.  For home programs, the program coordinator and the family finalize the design of the child and family’s specific behavior intervention program as all aspects of the program must fit the context of the family for optimal progress.  It takes utmost dedication of all family members to allow their child to reach their potential.   Behavior change programs involve skill building for the child and teaching parents and other family members how to manage challenging behaviors in all settings and how to increase learning opportunities throughout the day.  In short, a goal of intervention is to empower the family as a whole so they can experience some relief during daily routines and be able to take advantage of what the community has to offer them if their current circumstances have limited such access.

Once the behavior intervention program has been initiated, monthly meetings including our behavioral team, the parents and other professionals are held to insure progress is optimal for all persons involved.  The hours of intervention the child receives depend on need and vary from two hours per week to as many as 30 hours per week.