ABA (applied behavior analysis) is an effective approach to helping people of all ages. ABA can help children and adults learn new skills. It can help reduce the frequency of challenging behaviors. ABA can support social and communication skills. ABA can support a better quality of life.
Although ABA can be beneficial for a wide variety of concerns and for people of all ages, it is most effective when the clients have a support system helping them reach their goals.
Working with Children – The Need for Parental Involvement
When working with pediatric clients – whether the child has autism, ADHD, a learning disability, or you are working with a child to address common childhood behavioral challenges – it is very important to have parent or caregiver involvement in the child’s treatment. Parental involvement greatly improves the likelihood that the child will reach their treatment goals and will improve on the targeted behaviors and skills.
Parents play a crucial role in a child’s development. Not only do they spend a lot of time with their child and, therefore, can use this time to influence their child’s behaviors and learning, children have a special bond with their parents that they don’t have with anyone else which puts parents in a unique situation to positively impact their children.
How Parents Can Be Involved in Their Child’s Treatment
Although parents love their children unconditionally, parenting is challenging. It can be helpful to have a better understanding of how parents can be involved in their child’s services and to have easy access to information related to their child’s treatment.
Parent Training
There are several ways that parents and caregivers can be involved in a child’s ABA therapy services. One way parents can be involved in their child’s treatment is through participating in parent training services which provide an opportunity for them to learn about effective ABA-based behavior change strategies, how to implement a behavior intervention plan with their child, and to receive guidance on concerns they have about their child’s behaviors, learning, or development.
By participating in parent training, parents can help their child generalize and maintain skills that have been learned in ABA therapy. This means that the parent can learn effective strategies for helping their child practice the skills they are working on in their direct ABA sessions. They can give them more learning opportunities. They can also revisit skills over time to help their child retain the skills they have learned.
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Parent Portals
Another way that parents and caregivers can participate in their child’s ABA therapy is to have access to a parent portal. A parent portal can help parents keep track of therapy appointments. It can help parents be informed about their child’s treatment plan. It can provide access to progress reports, insurance authorization information, and information about the child’s therapy sessions, as well.
A parent portal is separate from a patient portal. A patient portal is to organize and store documentation, data, and records related to the patient. It is a centralized location for the patient or client’s treatment records. A parent portal is designed as a resource for parents to access to gain information about their child’s treatment.
Additionally, the treatment provider (BCBA or ABA therapist) can upload or enter information, data, session notes, and other helpful information that they think would be relevant and beneficial for the parent or caregiver to view with the intention that the parent or caregiver is more informed about their child’s services and that they are included in the child’s treatment.
A parent portal for ABA therapy can help parents stay informed about their child’s treatment goals. With all the appointments and services a child may have – from medical appointments to school services to therapies to specialized services – it can be overwhelming for parents to remember everything that each service provider is working on with their child. A parent portal is an easy way for parents to remind themselves of the goals being worked on in ABA therapy.
A parent portal is an internet-based resource that allows parents or caregivers to monitor their child’s progress in therapy. It is easily accessible as it can typically be accessed on any mobile or electronic device. The parent portal can offer the opportunity for parents and therapists to communicate with one another or to share notes about specific things related to the child’s behavior, functioning, and treatment. The parent portal can also offer information related to billing and therapy schedules. Parents can view treatment session notes and sign off on session notes to confirm that a session occurred as well as the start and end time of the session.
For the ABA therapist, a parent portal offers many benefits, as well. A parent portal supports the organization of a client’s information. It supports proper documentation. It makes things more efficient. A parent portal can offer the opportunity to create certain reports. Finally, having a parent portal can improve client satisfaction with your services.
Free Trial with Parent Portal
ABA therapists who use a parent portal with their clients are more likely to see parent and caregiver participation in a child’s ABA therapy. They will also be able to have a more streamlined way of communicating information to parents which reduces the response effort of both the parents and the therapists making it easier to manage a child’s ABA therapy services.
If you think a parent portal would be helpful for your ABA practice, check out WebABA today. Try a free trial of WebABA to support your clients and your practice.
