Initiating the process of providing behavioral services to foster children in inpatient facilities
APMRT’s roadmap shows how to set up behavior tracking and staff training for foster kids in inpatient facilities—ready to replicate.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Cruz-Khalili et al. (2021) walked into a locked inpatient unit for foster kids. They had to start APMRT tracking from zero.
The paper is a case story. It shows the first steps: picking data sheets, teaching staff, and getting approval.
What they found
No numbers are given. The team simply mapped out how they set up the system so others can copy it.
How this fits with other research
Lambert et al. (2017) also worked in the same kind of hospital ward. They proved a short latency-based FA can find the function of severe behavior in under an hour. Cruz-Khalili gives the next step: once you know the function, here is how to start daily tracking.
Schaal (1996) tells us moms were trained to run ABA at home back in the 1950s. Cruz-Khalili updates that idea for 2021: instead of parents, train rotating shift staff inside a facility.
Early et al. (2012) showed awake kids with autism can finish brain scans when staff use behavioral accommodations. Cruz-Khalili uses the same spirit—simple visuals, clear roles—so foster kids can finish treatment days without extra restraint.
Why it matters
If you work on an inpatient or residential unit, this roadmap saves you weeks of trial and error. Copy the forms, copy the staff kick-off meeting, and you can start collecting data next Monday even if your team has never used ABA before.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
AbstractThe Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act (2011) mandated states to monitor psychotropic medication usage in foster care systems. In response to that legislation, the Deputy Director of the Alabama Department of Human Resources developed the Alabama Psychiatric Medication Review Team (APMRT). To date, our team has engaged in actions to target relevant personnel in foster care systems including caseworkers, foster parents, biological parents, and prescribers of psychotropic medication. One component of APMRT services involves tracking psychotropic medication prescriptions in Alabama foster care through our state Medicaid base. This process led the APMRT to include residential facilities as a target for services. What follows is a detailed account of the steps the APMRT initiated within a specific inpatient residential facility to improve (a) behavior tracking systems and (b) staff members' implementation of general behavior interventions.
Behavioral Interventions, 2021 · doi:10.1002/bin.1829