Behavioral Implementation Development Services
Verdugo Hills Autism Project is a State-certified Non-Public Agency, allowing us to provide services to public school districts. Services funded by school districts are always provided pursuant to an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Our goal at VHAP is to meet each individual student’s specific needs in collaboration with school staff to support a positive school experience.
We provide Behavior Intervention services by trained professionals to clients in the school, home and community settings. Our team is skilled in assessing the client’s needs across multiple developmental domains and in identifying maladaptive behaviors that hinder their ability to function optimally within their environment. Through a functional behavioral assessment, the purpose or functions driving the child’s behaviors are determined in order to develop a comprehensive positive behavior support plan (sensory, escape/avoidance, attention, access) that emphasizes teaching and reinforcement of replacement behaviors. As well as other constitutional factors and developmental skill deficits that might trigger specific behaviors, we also address the client’s emotional regulation which may be affecting their behaviors and assist them in learning appropriate coping and self-monitoring strategies.
VHAP provides support during the learning process of skill acquisitions by using systematic and structured procedures including a task analysis, which may be utilized in order to develop the client’s competence, mastery and independence. Depending on the child’s needs our team may implement self-monitoring systems, behavior contracts, token economies, social-stories, visual schedules, and implementation of augmentative communication systems. In addition, maladaptive behaviors are decreased by setting appropriate limits for the behavior(s) using strategies that are safe and non-aversive. These strategies may include extinction, over-correction (having the child practice the replacement behavior), response-cost (loss of privilege) and time-out.
Our team of professionals use Positive Behavior Support to teach clients:
- Behavioral Regulation
- Emotional Regulation
- Compliance
- Attention to task
- Transitioning Skills
- Coping Skills
- Self Monitoring Skills
- Social Communication Skills
- Play-Skills
- Adaptive Skills
Clients are supported as directed by their parents to optimize their ability to meet appropriate behavioral expectations. Parents are supported to learn to utilize effective strategies to promote increased independence based on age-appropriate expectations.
Our staff has been certified in The Nonviolent Crisis Intervention (NCI) program. The NCI program uses the safest techniques possible to reduce the risk of injury. The training program emphasizes the Care, Welfare, Safety and Security of the client and uses a framework for problem solving. VHAP understand that our clients may have skill deficits across multiple domains in which we support and develop a positive therapeutic rapport with our clients at all times; especially during a crisis.
