Hello everyone,
I am in search for some guidence.
I currently work for one individual with autism. Let me fill you in on the back ground story. This individual is an adult male. 6 foot, 180 lbs. He is completely in the minority with current problem behavior. I see aggression to staff, high intensity SIB, low intensity SIB, stereotopy, perseveration, public undressing, eloping, throwing objects, behavioral incontenence, ect. He has been on a long list of medications, and treatments. Even Electro convulsive therapy, and marijuana.
This person has a parent who gets too involved with behavioral interventions. The parent pays for BCBA, 3 RBTs around the clock and the individual's house. The normal role of the RBT should be working directly under the BCBA, and not the parent. But the parent is my boss, and we "consult" with the BCBA irregularly. The BCBA will create a behavior plan, and the parent will tell us to do the opposit. For example, the plan says to ignore self injurous behavior and the parent will say to provide replacement behavior (self restraining with clothing, tying hands with a sweatshirt, protective gear) The BCBA insists that the self restraining, and protective gear is only reinforcing the behavior. I have witnessed this first hand. They even mand for the items before, and during the behavior. Then will smile and laugh when they receive the item (example; hitting head while asking for helmet). The ABC data is clear. This whole situation is a mess. On top of it all, the parent wants us to take the individual into the community several times a day. This person unbuckles the seatbelt and will scratch, pull hair, attempt to gouge eyes out, and put their fingers in your mouth. Then when we arrive at the destination, they will try to run into stores and steal items. Open bags of candy, open juice and dump it on the floor. This person has also deficated and urinated as a response to us removing stolen objects from their hands. Makes it extremely difficult to explain to managers, security guards and anyone else who witnesses it. This person also Breaks objects. One time this person ran into a neighbors yard, saw a garden gnome and smashed it in the street. When you tell the parent, they come up with excuses for him. When you tell the BCBA, they will say to block the behavior. Then when the parent sees this, they become upset.
Here is my dilema:
There isnt any helpful literature on what I can do. The parent needs to listen to the BCBA. The parent also needs to stop sending us out in the community with all these safety concerns. The BCBA needs to work on training sessions with RBTs. There are a lot of things conflicting with ethics of my role as an RBT. Everyone in my family says I need to quit. It is really taking a toll on me mentally and physically. Ive been scratched then pooped on. Went home with ripped clothes. The emergency room knows me by name because i go so often from work. Everything is telling me to quit. However, I do love my job. It is highly rewarding. My pay keeps me afloat. Double national average pay for RBT. I just need everyones cooperation. The parent, BCBA, other RBTs need to unite and tackle all these issues together, but they dont. Everyone thinks they know best. Its a very dysfunctional situation.
I am in search for some guidence.
I currently work for one individual with autism. Let me fill you in on the back ground story. This individual is an adult male. 6 foot, 180 lbs. He is completely in the minority with current problem behavior. I see aggression to staff, high intensity SIB, low intensity SIB, stereotopy, perseveration, public undressing, eloping, throwing objects, behavioral incontenence, ect. He has been on a long list of medications, and treatments. Even Electro convulsive therapy, and marijuana.
This person has a parent who gets too involved with behavioral interventions. The parent pays for BCBA, 3 RBTs around the clock and the individual's house. The normal role of the RBT should be working directly under the BCBA, and not the parent. But the parent is my boss, and we "consult" with the BCBA irregularly. The BCBA will create a behavior plan, and the parent will tell us to do the opposit. For example, the plan says to ignore self injurous behavior and the parent will say to provide replacement behavior (self restraining with clothing, tying hands with a sweatshirt, protective gear) The BCBA insists that the self restraining, and protective gear is only reinforcing the behavior. I have witnessed this first hand. They even mand for the items before, and during the behavior. Then will smile and laugh when they receive the item (example; hitting head while asking for helmet). The ABC data is clear. This whole situation is a mess. On top of it all, the parent wants us to take the individual into the community several times a day. This person unbuckles the seatbelt and will scratch, pull hair, attempt to gouge eyes out, and put their fingers in your mouth. Then when we arrive at the destination, they will try to run into stores and steal items. Open bags of candy, open juice and dump it on the floor. This person has also deficated and urinated as a response to us removing stolen objects from their hands. Makes it extremely difficult to explain to managers, security guards and anyone else who witnesses it. This person also Breaks objects. One time this person ran into a neighbors yard, saw a garden gnome and smashed it in the street. When you tell the parent, they come up with excuses for him. When you tell the BCBA, they will say to block the behavior. Then when the parent sees this, they become upset.
Here is my dilema:
There isnt any helpful literature on what I can do. The parent needs to listen to the BCBA. The parent also needs to stop sending us out in the community with all these safety concerns. The BCBA needs to work on training sessions with RBTs. There are a lot of things conflicting with ethics of my role as an RBT. Everyone in my family says I need to quit. It is really taking a toll on me mentally and physically. Ive been scratched then pooped on. Went home with ripped clothes. The emergency room knows me by name because i go so often from work. Everything is telling me to quit. However, I do love my job. It is highly rewarding. My pay keeps me afloat. Double national average pay for RBT. I just need everyones cooperation. The parent, BCBA, other RBTs need to unite and tackle all these issues together, but they dont. Everyone thinks they know best. Its a very dysfunctional situation.
