Supporting Best Practices in Autism Intervention

AutismPro

OVERVIEW

1. Background

2. How it works

3. First research on its impact

AN INTRODUCTION

Invitation to Canada

The ‘why’ of AutismPro

• 1.Long waiting lists for diagnosis

• 2.Long waiting lists for first assessment

• 3.Long waiting lists for first individualized educational programs

‘What about ‘the triad’ of early intervention to help parents ?’

FROM PARENTS TO PROFESSIONALS

° Enormous increase in prevalence

° Enormous increase in well-informed professionals…?

° Enormous increase in children in inclusive environments…

° Enormous increase in improvisation…

° Enormous increase in frustration and rivalry…

THE ‘METHODS’

° The ‘war’ between the different ‘methods’

° The ‘market of despair’ on internet…

° How to give more ‘power’ to parents and to professionals

° No miracles, but a ‘sound’ approach

About us

• Dr. Kathleen Ann Quill, Autism Institute, Essex

• Dr. Pamela Wolfberg, San Francisco State University

• Dr. Cathy Pratt, Director, Indiana State University, Bloomington

• Dr. Brenda Smith-Myles, Professor of Special Education, University of Kansas

• Dr. Diane Twachtman-Cullen, Director of ADDCON Center in Connecticut

• Margaret Spoelstra, Executive Director, Autism Ontario

• Paula Aquilla, Occupational Therapist

• Neil Walker, Program Director, Geneva Center for Autism

• Theo Peeters, Founder, Centre for Training on Autism (Antwerp)

• Dr. Michael Cameron, Associate Professor, Department of Special Education, Simmons College

Goal: Providing Guidance & Tools

Best practices in autism intervention can be supported by:

--Management software tool : AutismPro

What is AutismPro?

AutismPro is a powerful online program that:

• Recommends a tailored intervention plan for 1 or more children

• Supports a wide range of behavioral, developmental, social programs

Basic Concepts Behind AutismPro Navigation

AutismPro:

• Supports the development of an intervention plan for a child with autism

• Replicates the 9-step clinical process of developing an intervention plan for school, home, or a clinical setting

Follow 9 Planning Steps to Stay in Control

AutismPro’s 9 Step Training & Decision Making

1. Collecting Relevant Case Information

2. Understanding Child Profile & Method Preference

3. Curriculum Assessment

4. Selecting Objectives

5. Selecting Activities

6. Selecting Teaching Strategies

7. Selecting Learning and Behavioral Supports

8. Scheduling, Coordinating Efforts

9. Logging, Interpreting Progress

Step 1: Case Info

Getting started is simple:

• Allow AutismPro to guide you through completing the background info that personalizes your program

• Screen image

• Screen name

• Diagnostic info

• Team info

Step 2 A: Completing a Child Profile

Let AutismPro guide you in selecting the child type that best resembles the child today

Step 2 B: Method Preference

• Singular training of staff in one approach should not result in singular choices for families, evidence for more than one approach

• Families should be educated and given choices in the approach to educational intervention for their children

• Early intensive intervention in autism that focuses on critical skill development can be achieved by behavioral (ABA), developmental (contemporary ABA), or social (RDI, SCERTS etc) approaches

Pick What Works Best For Child, Situation

• Behavioral Method

• Developmental Method

• Social Method

Methods Integrated into Clear Choices

• Methods can be seen as a continuum of similarities and differences in philosophy and teaching strategies

• Some of the most successful programs in North America are seen as behavioral, developmental, or social

Behavioural Method: Structured, Scripted

Developmental Method: Systematic but Fun

Social Method: Let the Child Lead, Very Fun

Step 3: Assessment: Understanding Needs

• Understand child’s strengths & weaknesses

• Understand where to begin in the curriculum

Results: Initial Curriculum for a Specific Child

• Understand child’s strengths & weaknesses

• Understand where to begin in the curriculum

Step 4: Getting Tailored Objectives

AutismPro provides two objective selection options:

• AutismPro Recommended - Allow AutismPro to recommend a tailored list of objectives to work on with your child

• You Decide - Select objectives yourself from a list of recommended objectives that are appropriate to your child’s skill level

Step 4: Sample Objectives List

Step 5: Getting Step-by-Step Activities

AutismPro provides activities to help achieve your objectives:

• AutismPro recommends a list of activities

These activities are tailored to your child’s needs based on the child’s skill level and your selected method preference.

Step 5: Activities

Activities address the following questions:

• What should I do to teach the objective?

• How do I ensure mastery of new skills?

• How do I motivate and engage the child to learn?

Squirt and Splash

Objective: Uses eye contact with adults to maintain social interaction during a preferred activity

Developmental Area: Emotional

Curriculum Area: Joint Attention

Method: Developmental

Developmental Level: Basic

Category: Exploratory play

Setting: Adult-Child

Step 5: Sample Activity

Materials• Bath or pool with water inside

• Squirt bottle or squirt toys

• Cups

Procedure1. The child is bathing. Place a few squirt toys in the bath.

2. Pick a squirt toy and unexpectedly squirt the child on his or her belly. If the child is sensitive to being squirted or splashed, you can squirt at a toy or at the water directly in front of the child. You can also squirt from under the water to create a fountain effect if the child finds it more motivating.

3. Stop squirting and wait. When the child looks at you, reinforce him/her by saying, 'Good looking," and begin squirting again.

5000 Activities, Reflect Different Methods

• Activities are written to reflect a method

• Activities from different methods can be used to target the same or different learning objectives

Step 6: Strategies

Learn how strategies address the following questions:

• How do I prepare for successful teaching?

• How do I interact with the child?

• How do I respond to behaviors?

Step 6: Accessing Strategies

• AutismPro will guide you in using teaching strategies:

• That meet your needs

• Are appropriate for your child’s skill level

• Support your method preference

Step 6: How to do it: Video Training

• Learn through video diverse strategies

• Different strategies reflected in different methods and associated activities (behavioral, developmental, social)

How to Prepare

1. Activity Setting

2. Activity Structure

3. Activity Motivation

4. Activity Documentation

How to Interact

1. Language Use

2. Emotion and Affect

3. Prompting

4. Repetition

How to Respond to

1. Child’s Initiations

2. Child’s Successes

3. Child’s Ritualistic Behavior

4. Child’s Challenging Behavior

Junior responding to behavioral activity

Junior responding to developmental activity

Junior responding to social activity

Step 7: Supports

Learn how supports address the following questions:

• Why does the child have problem behaviors?

• How can I prevent them?

• How can I support the child’s learning of new skills?

Step 7: Accessing Supports

Select supports to help you:

• Deal with learning and behavior problems in specific situations

• Understand, prevent, and support your child's learning and behavior challenges

Learn how to understand specific causes

Supports for challenging behaviors are organized into seven different problem support areas:

1. Social Challenges

2. Communication Difficulties

3. Difficulties with School-Inclusion

4. Difficulties with Independence

5. Problems with the Curriculum

6. Sensory Regulation Challenges

7. Problems with Ritualistic Behaviors

Learn Popular Supports by Problem Situation

Supports Example

Communication Picture Exchange System

Curriculum Adaptive Materials

Independence Activity Schedules

Inclusion Peer Modeling

Sensory Regulation Sensory Diets

Social Social Stories

Sample Support Plan for Severe Autism

Activity Routines

Cue Cards

Step 8: Team Coordination

Learn importance of:

• Regular communication

• Progress and issue tracking

• Updating

Step 8: Planning Your Time

• AutismPro provides you with a schedule to plan your time and coordinate your support team

• Schedule activities

• Dedicate a resource or team member

• Select a location for the activity

• Add daily notes and instructions

• Print off days, weeks, and months at a glance

Step 9: Progress Tracking

Learn how to document:

• The child’s mastery of specific objectives

• The child’s acquisition of skills in curriculum areas

• The child’s overall developmental improvements

Learn the signs that:

• An objective may need to be changed

• An activity may need to be changed

• A method or strategy may need to be changed

Is it Working?: Progress Measures

• Use AutismPro to answer your most critical question:

• How can I tell if the child’s intervention plan is working?

• AutismPro will guide you in tracking and logging the child’s progress

What you will do: Choose, Learn, Act

• Better understand autism and autism intervention

• Choose between different methods

• Pick skills to teach

• Teach through activities

• Improve through strategies

• Support learning and prevent problem behaviors with supports

• Log and monitor progress

• Collaborate with others

Outcome

• Guidance & training in developing and delivering autism intervention

• Team collaboration tool

• A quality intervention plan that supports best practices

Studies on How Well AutismPro is Working

Research

Study A: Usability & Usefulness

Parent Participation in Early Intervention

with Software-Assisted Guidance

Cynthia Howroyd, Theo Peeters

To be Published: September Issue, Good Autism Practices, University of Birmingham, England

Evaluation of the impact of AutismPro on changes in child behaviour and parental well-being

Background:

• 46 families in Ontario

• 52 children between 2 and 9

• 63 adults (a few professionals, most parents)

• Research conducted by Queen’s University

• Principal investigator: Jeanette Holden,PhD

• 36% of families with recent diagnosis

• 55% of parents already some kind of intervention plan

• 9% of parents: no diagnosis, no intervention plan

Preliminary results

46/46 families completed questionnaires

1.Usability: ‘To what extent do you feel you have learned to navigate and use the application successfully?’ (50%

of families had English as 2nd language)

100% ability to navigate strong to very strong

Preliminary results

2. To what extent do you feel this application will become a useful tool in your intervention strategy?

100% rated the product as useful or very useful

Preliminary results

3. Perceived value: ‘To what extent would you recommend AutismPro to others?’

21% indicated they would recommend AP to others

79% indicated they would highly recommend AP to others

Preliminary results

4.AREA OF USEFULNESS: (open question) What do you think overall about AutismPro

Strong themes emerged:

• Parents felt it empowered them, made them feel more in control, and reduced stress and anxiety

• …a significant value in providing a single tool that made comprehensive information and guidance accessible to them from their home

• …they could now access quality guidance when they needed it most at their own pace and share it more efficiently with others helping their child

Marketing?

I also was uncomfortable with the “marketing aspect” of AutismPro until recently, but the value of the product and the reality of service delivery shifted my perspective - the reality is that every time someone buys a book on autism, pays a therapist for consultation, or pays to attend a lecture on autism – it is a result of marketing.

Maximize developmental potential versus accommodations

There may be significant cultural differences between what families want in North America and what families want in Europe. Families in US and Canada want to aggressively maximize their child’s developmental potential in the early years using all the best teaching practices – once the child is 7 years old, they then shift more of their focus to accommodations.

“I feel that CC has made a huge change in his eye contact, and his awareness of people and things around him. We are still anxiously awaiting some speech but he is beginning to do a lot of babbling and this has definitely reduced some stress in our home. I think that AutismPro has helped us feel as though we have taken some control in this situation and that we are not at the mercy of the Government for services. Every activity that we do with him has allowed us to feel better about the time we spend, knowing that it is creative time and that all these small changes in the way we speak to him and play with him will eventually bring on the biggest changes. We are thrilled that it [AutismPro] is a means for us to feel like a very active part of his development.”

DC: A Therapy Guide

EE: A Management Tool

“LE has now obtained so much eye contact that the words are just falling into place, she is coming along so well with imaginary play and socializing beyond what anyone had expected. AutismPro goes well beyond our family members. We share this with everyone who is involved with us. LE, who has Autism and who a year ago had less than 10 words to speak of, is now almost age appropriate in a lot of areas ….. She argues with her sisters just like other families, she chooses her own clothes and tells you what she had for lunch, and most of all calls us Mom and Dad for the first time since her birth. It has also brought down the stress in our lives tremendously as we are all able to communicate and have fun.”

JF: An Educational Resource

“There is definitely less stress in our family life, since I don't have to rush to different services with lengthy wait lines and redundant (and lengthy) intake processes. I get information by just logging into the program and browsing through available activities, areas of development, suggested techniques, and much more. There are positive changes in my child's development, but also there is a better rapport with my child just because of my better understanding of the disorder, all just thanks to AutismPro’s timely providing me with this necessary information.”

A few personal reflections:

1.No miracle, but good practice, ‘supports’…

2.Bulk of information easy to keep and pass over (tracking facilities…)

3.How are the government subventions spent? Control of the use of time and money (evidence of best practice…?)(quality control…)

4.More burden on parents’ shoulders…?

5.What about the political work…?

6.Role of OCA en Fontys OSO

AutismPro Home

AutismPro Professional

AutismPro Educator

AutismPro for Schools

For further information contact:

Cynthia Howroyd,MSc, SLP

President

Virtual Expert Clinics

Howroyd@vecinc.com

Direct 001 (506) 462-0991

E-mail: info@autismpro.com

www.autismpro.com

BEDANKT VOOR DE AANDACHT !!!

Thank You

Cynthia Howroyd, MSc, SLP

President

Virtual Expert Clinics

Howroyd@vecinc.com