Using the teaching interaction procedure (TIP) to train staff on building electronic clinical programming books in CentralReach

Davis et al. (2026) tested whether the Teaching Interaction Procedure (TIP) could teach staff to build electronic clinical programs inside CentralReach. TIP gives a quick label, rationale, shows the steps, models the task, then gives live feedback.

Instead of letting new hires click around the EMR alone, the trainers ran one TIP cycle: explain why tidy program books matter, demo the clicks, watch the staff member try it, and praise or correct on the spot.

The study found positive results. Staff learned to enter programs into CentralReach after receiving TIP training.

Details like how many staff or how long it took are not reported, but the direction of effect was clearly positive.

Green et al. (2020) did the first test of TIP as a staff trainer. They taught three aides to run social-skills lessons with kids with ASD. All hit mastery fast. Davis takes the same four-step package and simply swaps the task from social skills to EMR data entry, so the 2026 paper extends the 2020 finding to a new job.

Mailey et al. (2021) and Rosales et al. (2018) also got naive staff to high fidelity, but they used adaptive computer lessons instead of live TIP. The takeaway: both live TIP and smart software can work; pick the tool that matches your setting. If you already own CentralReach, embedding TIP inside it may save trainer hours.

Baruni et al. (2025) showed a 30-minute interactive module alone was enough for BCBAs to learn firearm-safety training. Davis adds a wrinkle: the module is not just watched, it is delivered through TIP steps while the staff member actually builds the program book. The two studies agree that short, interactive tech beats long lectures.

You no longer need to stand over a new hire for an hour while they fumble through CentralReach. Run one TIP cycle: tell them the why, show the clicks, let them practice, and give immediate feedback. The early evidence says they will reach mastery faster than self-trial and error, and you free up senior staff for billable hours. Try filming a two-minute model screen-capture; pause it at each step for live rehearsal and feedback. If it works in your clinic, you have a cheap, repeatable onboarding loop.