Center the margin: Equity-Based Assessment and Response Strategies to Reach Underserved Communities Using a Telehealth Service Delivery Model
Telehealth ABA needs an equity checklist so BIPOC families are not left behind.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Gingles (2022) wrote a position paper. It tells BCBAs how to run telehealth ABA so BIPOC families are reached and treated fairly.
No kids were tested. The paper pulls from equity theory and gives a checklist-style plan for remote services.
What they found
The paper finds that usual telehealth steps miss racial and ethnic road-blocks. It offers new steps: ask about racism, check internet cost, use culture-smart visuals, and track who drops out by race.
No numbers are given; the piece is a call to action, not an experiment.
How this fits with other research
Ferguson et al. (2018) looked at 28 telehealth ABA studies and said "it works, but quality is weak." Gingles takes that same telehealth world and adds an equity lens, so the two fit like puzzle pieces.
McQuaid et al. (2024) interviewed workers and said "hire diverse staff and partner with caregivers to close diagnosis gaps for Black and Latinx kids." Gingles echoes that advice and moves it into the online room.
Rosales et al. (2021) heard Latino parents say "we didn’t know ABA existed and our English is limited." Gingles turns those real barriers into a telehealth checklist, extending the Latino findings to all BIPOC groups.
Why it matters
You can start using the equity checklist on your next telehealth case. Ask the family what tech they can afford, translate visuals, and note race data at intake. These small moves can keep BIPOC clients from quietly dropping off your caseload.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Add one question about technology cost and one about preferred language to your intake form before the next telehealth session.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
While the COVID-19 pandemic has initiated drastic personal, social, organizational, and governmental level changes, it also sparked a unique opportunity. More Behavior Analysis providers had the option to respond to this crisis by offering telehealth services. As providers address their ability to conduct sessions using electronic delivery methods, there is also a need to prioritize those who historically have been forgotten in the formation of systemwide change: Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC). This paper outlines barriers to accessing telehealth treatment and includes options for individual providers and organizations to address disparity and other relevant contextual variables within their telehealth models.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2022 · doi:10.1007/s40617-022-00685-w