Welcome and thank you for considering Building Independence Together (BIT) as your service provider for applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy services. Our mission is to serve children and families by encouraging individuality and trauma responsive ABA services. With the use of evidence-based practices and research, we strive to provide affirming therapy from a philosophy of understanding and compassion. Our supervisors and staff are encouraged to work collaboratively within our community. We firmly believe that every individual deserves compassion, understanding, and assent led services.
BIT provides services throughout Charleston, Dorchester, Berkeley, and Colleton counties. Currently, BIT offers in-home ABA services, a preschool readiness clinic, and consultation services with a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) or Board Certified assistant Behavior Analyst (BCaBA). We provide services for individuals with a wide variety of insurance companies including for those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and have private pay options as well.
The process to obtain ABA therapy services can be tedious but we are here to help! Here are the steps of intake for BIT:
1. By submitting this intake form, your learner will be added to BIT’s call back list
2. Once placement is available based on the availability of the family and location, a representative from BIT will contact the family to provide more information
3. A larger intake packet will be completed
4. The billing department will verify insurance and request an authorization for an initial assessment
5. A certified behavior analyst will contact the family to set up a time for an initial assessment of the learner’s abilities and speak more with the family about expectations for treatment
6. The behavior analyst will make clinical recommendations and write a report to submit to insurance to request authorization for ABA therapy services
7. The learner will begin services once insurance authorization is obtained and staff is available
The amount of ABA therapy recommended is based on evidence-based medical necessity assessments and clinical recommendations from our experienced behavior analysts based on direct and indirect assessments of the individual’s abilities. If deemed appropriate, your learner will be assigned 1 or more registered behavior technicians (RBTs) that will provide one-on-one ABA therapy services to your learner. This program will be overseen by a certified behavior analyst supervisor.
Please see the below expectations for BIT families:
1. The learner should be awake, dressed, fed, and ready to participate before the RBT arrives to begin services.
2. A parent or responsible adult (person over the age of 18, who is capable of driving in an emergency situation) must be in the home the entire duration of therapy
3. The RBT is not allowed to take or transport a child in their automobile
4. If a supervisor feels a sibling can be a useful and beneficial participant in a session to aide in the implementation of social skills, the supervisor will discuss these targets and goals with the parent prior to the start of the therapy session. The RBT, however, will not be providing therapy or supervision for siblings. Therefore, a caregiver must be present when a sibling is joining a session.
5. Due to the nature of behavioral therapy, any methods of time out or spanking will be suspended to make room for an individuals behavior support plan. This plan will be created by the BCBA and reviewed by parents to determine the best plan. If withholding spanking or time out does not work for your family, services will need to be paused until such a time that families can suspend these methods.
6. Your session time is reserved for you. We are rarely able to fill a cancelled session unless we know about the cancellation in advance. If more than 15% of scheduled sessions are missed within a 6-month period, you are not in compliance with the attendance policy. If attendance negatively impacts the quality of clinical services, a meeting with your supervisor will be scheduled. At this meeting, a plan will be put in place to correct the issue. If absences that impact the quality of clinical services continue, it may result in the termination of therapy services provided by BIT.
7. We ask that all homes include a therapeutic environment that is safe for both learner and staff
Assent & Consent Based Services
BIT provides consent & assent-based therapy services. Caregivers will be asked to indicate specific behaviors signaling their child is “in distress”. If any distress behaviors are observed, the current task will be paused as it was assumed the child was withdrawing their assent and resumed once assent is established. BIT will conduct ongoing assent assessments with client(s) throughout the treatment plan. Assent can be revoked at any time without penalty.
Inclusivity
BIT is committed to diversity and inclusion by providing our staff members with a workplace that supports and encourages these ideals. Since our employees’ workplaces are our client’s homes, BIT feels it is important that we are transparent about our policy regarding diversity. Our clients come from all walks fo life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, because it makes our company stronger, but more importantly because it is the right thing to do. BIT honors the differences in our experiences, ideas and who we are because it enriches our workplace and our work. We lead with our values and strive to create an environment that enables our employees to develop their potential and come to work as their authentic selves.
With that said, BIT will not perform services in homes that do not reflect this philosophy and ask the following:
1. There be no iconography in the home that has been widely accepted as demeaning to any race, sexual orientation, or gender
2. There be no conversations our staff is privy to that could be demeaning to any race, sexual orientation, or gender. We also asked that our staff not be included or privy to conversations about religion or politics while in your home
By completing the following form, you have confirmed that you have read our welcome and policies. We look forward to working with you!