Reply to ABA Recommendations [Silver Spring]

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Agree with hiring the BCBA directly. You will want to interview them, ask for a resume, ask about experience, ask specifically about experience in that birth-5 range, ask about experience handling problem behaviors similar to your child, ask about assessments, ask hypothetical questions, ask if they plan to move anytime soon, and overall just make sure you think they’d be a good fit for your situation and child.

Observe them interacting with your child at home for a bit just playing and see what happens and also allow them to observe the child in the classroom before proceeding. You can have the best BCBA and it still might not be a good fit, sometimes the BCBA will acknowledge that themselves and not accept the case and sometimes the parent makes that call. Either way is fine during those first couple meetings, it’s best to find a situation all are comfortable with.

Also be very up front and honest about your child and expectations at school, problem behaviors, etc. This will help ensure the best fit for your child.

BACB.com to find a provider in your area.[/quote]

Do BCBAs commonly work independently like this? I would much rather hire a BCBA but my experience with mental health in general is that group practices tend to be higher quality. [/quote]

Many BCBAs work independently but only take a few clients. I don’t how common it is in your area, but it’s fairly common within the field. Usually they are more interested in direct service than supervision of BCaBA or RBT as is the model often found in larger companies.

One upside is you’ll likely get an experienced professional that likes working with kids and families. Most people don’t work this way just out of college, where they still have much to learn. It takes time and experience to know you’re basically on your own to solve problems and feel comfortable with that responsibility. That said  independent providers should only take clients within their scope of experience so you might have to interview a couple to find a good fit.

The downside is if that person is sick you don’t have any additional coverage and might miss sessions from time to time. Another downside is you’re working with one person only. If you don’t like them you can’t easily switch within a practice, you’ll have to go through the process to find a new provider.

There are a few practices that just have BCBAs working, so a benefit of that is they can collaborate if they are having difficulty with a particular case and have some benefit of pooled experiences. You may also have coverage if your BCBA is out but not always the case as most manage their own caseloads.

So it’s a toss up on what you prefer- there are benefits and disadvantages to both, many more than I’ve listed. So to answer the original question I wouldn’t consider those working in a group practice any less experienced overall than in individual practice, but do think it takes a certain level of education, experience, professionalism, and confidence to do the job completely on your own. Either way is fine just find what works for you and your family.

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