As many healthcare providers accept insurance coverage for ABA therapy, there is a growing need for objective documentation that reflects client progress towards treatment goals and identifies barriers to client outcomes. Session notes help substantiate billing claims, provide a rationale for the need for ongoing services, are included as part of the client's medical record, and are required by funders to remain in compliance with regulations. However, despite the need for staff training in this area, there have been few studies published in the behavior analytic literature that have evaluated how to effectively write session notes that demonstrate the medical necessity for ABA services.

This webinar outlines a behavioral skills training (BST) model for training staff on how to write medically necessary session notes and provides a framework for quality assurance measures, to ensure staff document relevant information. You will learn how to create your own training resources, checklists, templates, rubrics, and evaluation measures, outlining a systematic approach to generating more accurate and objective session notes. 

At the end of this webinar, you will be able to

1. Understand medical necessity and its importance to ABA session notes
2. Describe the essential clinical and non-clinical components of session notes
3. Utilize a framework for writing the narrative section of session notes
4. Establish quality assurance measures for evaluating documentation 

About the Presenter

Jamie Hughes Lika

Dr. Hughes-Lika has been providing evidence-based services for children with autism and related disorders for over 21 years. She has been board certified since 2001 and is a licensed behavior analyst in the state of Nevada. She is also an Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) Certified Therapist. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Psychology and Sociology from Saint Ambrose University, in 1999. She then relocated to Denver, CO and worked for an organization providing behavior analytic services, and in 2001 she obtained her BCaBA certification. In 2004, she obtained a Master of Arts degree in Applied Behavior Analysis from The Ohio State University, studying under Professors Cooper, Heron, and Heward. Her thesis consisted of the assessment and treatment of automatically-maintained problem behavior, under the supervision of Dr. Stephanie Peterson. In 2015, she earned her PhD in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities from the University of Kent, in the UK. Her dissertation focused on the development of a 12-week parent-mediated naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention (NDBI) for toddlers with ASD.