Stretch Before You Run: 3 Questions to Ask Before You Start Your Next Consultation
I’m a runner.
I’m not a very fast runner. I’m not very consistent. I can’t run long distances.
That’s not very impressive by any means. But I do run to stay in shape. At the ripe old age of 38, speed, consistency, and endurance are harder to come by than they were before. But there’s something that I’ve gotten really good at that I was never good at before. It’s something that comes with age. It’s something necessary.
I’m really good at stretching.
The prep work (aka stretching) that goes into a simple task like running says a lot about the importance of prep work.
If prep work is important with small tasks, then it has to be with complex ones, and conducting a consultation with a client and their RBT is no small feat. So, why don’t we talk about preparing for a consultation more? Certainly some BCBAs do prepare. But, many don’t.
Today I’m going to talk about three questions I think every BCBA should ask themselves ahead of time to accentuate and elevate the effectiveness of their daily consultations with their learners. These are questions that—should you choose to answer them—will prepare you for your next consultation.
Let’s go.
How is my learner progressing with their treatment plan goals?
Has this ever happened to you (or a BCBA you know)? You write a treatment plan with a number of goals. The treatment plan is approved. You don’t look at the treatment plan after it has been submitted and approved. As a result, you spend the next several months of the authorization adjusting your programming based on the needs of the learner as they arise. Then, when it’s time to do a treatment plan again, you sit down to report on the goals that you supposedly were supposed to have targeted. It turns out you haven’t worked on any of them (if not some of them). Despite your learner having made progress on a variety of programs that you chose to target, they haven’t made progress on the goals you told insurance that you were going to work on. Uh oh.
Every BCBA should start their consultation off by refreshing themselves on where—exactly—their learner’s progress is in relation to the treatment plan goals that they have written for THAT authorization. Do yourself a favor. Start by pulling up that treatment plan you’ve written and noting the progress your learner has made on each goal before every consultation. If you’re targeting having the learner label 25 common items as a treatment plan goal, you want to know EXACTLY how many items they can label right now. Is it 12? 15?
You’ll thank me later.
What are the five or six most important goals that we’re working on right now?
It’s a quality of life thing. If you look at the programs that your learner is working on right now, chances are that there are five or six that are more important than the others. That doesn’t mean that the others aren’t important. It simply means that there are a few that—should your learner master them—will improve things for them on a grander scale.
For example, is it more important for your learner to learn to wash their hands? Make a request for help? Or, is it more important that they label the common features of a tiger shark?
I would argue that all are important—but some are a little more important than others.
You should know what these “high return” programs are. And you should refresh yourself on which ones they are before every consultation. Literally rank these programs from most to least importance and prepare yourself to start with those programs when observing, troubleshooting, and/or making changes when you are in consultation with the child and RBT. In instances where your consultation may end unexpectedly, this method ensures that you’ve at least addressed those really important skills and kept them moving.
How can the data help me prepare for my consult?
Obviously we’re all about data based decisions in ABA. This makes sense to everyone. The data educates what we decide. But, how do we use this data to plan our approach to the consultation ahead of time?
Before you head into consultation, roll through the data for each of your programs. List out the programs that appear to be mastered and jot down your tentative next steps for that program. If a program appears to have reached mastery, what’s the next step? What will you target now? Are you going to increase the array size? Is it time for a new composite skill?
List out programs that are stagnant, too. What questions do you want to ask the RBT concerning the programs? What things will you be looking for when the RBT runs the program? Write these down.
The above strategies can be helpful for several reasons. First, they help us stay on course in regard to what we’ve proposed in our treatment plans. This allows us to address and demonstrate progress more effectively. Second, they help ensure that progress continues in the right areas—the areas that will actually help the learner. Finally, it prepares us for clinical decisions that we’ll likely be making with the particular learner. Feeling prepared as you begin a consultation with a learner can yield a sense of relief…and believe it or not…your RBTs can pick up on that as well!
Announcement: Looking for a (Better) Facebook Group to help with clinical decision making? My colleagues and I have launched a clinical support group HERE where the responses and feedback are curated to ensure you’re getting the best answers to your questions. Come join our community. It’s free! We want to make YOU better at your job.
Get pumped: Checkout bxmastery.com. Do you know BCBAs who are struggling with making quality decisions regarding program selection? We’ve got ABA goals in the thousands, with recommendations on where to start and where to go next. We’re still beta-testing this new tool and adding new skills and skill areas every day, but we’re excited because we think it will help a lot of people. Message if you’re interested in getting involved.
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