11 Aug Integrated Behavioral Technologies, Inc. Receives $25,000 Grant from Kansas Health Foundation

Integrated Behavioral Technologies, Inc. was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the Kansas Health Foundation to support improved capacity for IBT through critical, sustainable training, allowing IBT to fulfill its mission of training providers to implement evidence-based behavioral services for underserved Kansas families.

IBT staff will attend Safety-Care Behavioral “Train-the-Trainer” Initial Training to reduce the likelihood and the intensity of behavioral crises for individuals with autism across 23 rural Kansas counties.

IBT plans to send two staff members to Safety-Care Behavioral “Train-the-Trainer” Initial Training in Winter 2021, located in Des Moines or Iowa City, Iowa. The Safety-Care Behavioral Initial Training includes incident prevention, incident minimization, incident management/physical safety, incident management/physical management, post-incident procedures, and role-plays, and trains staff in safe and effective behavioral incident prevention and response techniques to improve the overall level of service to clients. Upon return, the two IBT staff members will serve as expert trainers for the rest of IBT’s staff (56 providers). The ability to provide internal, Safety-Care Behavioral Initial Training for staff members reduces future costs for this type of professional development, lending sustainability to this project.

Aggression is a clinically significant feature of many children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Self-injurious behavior also appears to be relevant to the occurrence of aggression. Individuals with ASD are at an increased risk for demonstrating self-injurious behaviors, as compared to those without ASD, with prevalence rates ranging from 30% to 53%. Although self-injury and other forms of challenging behaviors have been considered to be distinct forms of behavior, they are often related (Mazurek, Kanne, & Wodka, 2013). Aggression in children with autism can take many forms, such as hitting, kicking, scratching, biting, or destroying property. Aggression can be directed at self or others, and without training can be scary for everyone involved.

Given the intense needs of many of the clients IBT serves through home and community based autism services, at The K.I.D.S Place, and at the assessment clinic, having staff qualified in appropriate safety assist procedures is vital. It is also critical that IBT have staff certified as trainers in Safety-Care Behavioral “Train-the-Trainer” Initial Training who can on-board incoming staff.

IBT has a mission to serve children and families who face barriers to evidence-based interventions due to income and/or geographic isolation and is the only provider to help support the needs of children with autism in 23 Kansas counties. IBT provides one-on-one in-home applied behavior analysis (ABA) services, parent training, and assessment services by partnering with schools, other nonprofits, and state/federal agencies.

At Assel Grant Services our mission is to help you achieve yours. We take pride in every success knowing that we are helping our community through assisting organizations like IBT to achieve their goals and deepen their impact. If you are interested in talking with us about how Assel Grant Services might be able to help your organization please contact us!