A comprehensive parent-education curriculum combining a 10-video course and two 45-minute in-person workshops, grounded in pediatric guidelines and family-centered practice.
What systematic science proves actually works (e.g., CBT, Behavior Training).
2. Clinical Skill & Expertise
The provider's professional wisdom, specialized training, and medical judgment.
3. Family Values & Preferences
Your family's unique culture, priorities, home schedule, and physical resources.
Your voice as a parent is one of the three required pillars of evidence-based care.
Facilitator Guide
Evidence Framework
• Definition: Define EBP utilizing APA/AAP guidelines. Emphasize that clinical research cannot replace family values.
• Measurement: Explain how tracking functional markers (school, sleep) is key to evaluating research fit.
• Reference: Ground this in GLAD-PC and Wolraich guidelines.
Slide 3 of 8
Charuma Co.
0–5 min
Four Questions for Your Provider
You are a partner in care. When you meet with a therapist, doctor, or evaluator, write down these four questions to guide your discussion:
Q1
"What specific challenges or behaviors are we targeting?"
Q2
"What approaches are we using, and what will parents do between sessions?"
Q3
"How will we measure whether treatment is helping?"
Q4
"What is our backup plan if progress stalls or things worsen?"
A strong clinician should explain their treatment path in plain, understandable language.
Facilitator Guide
Empowering Caregivers
• Collaboration: Support parents to expect structured therapeutic goals from community clinicians.
• System Shift: Standardized outcome monitoring (using ROM protocols) significantly improves pediatric results.
• Coaching: Teach parents to view themselves as critical treatment system hubs.
Slide 4 of 8
Charuma Co.
13–23 min
Levels of Professional Support
Treatment comes in different amounts of structure. A professional evaluator helps match your child's immediate safety and symptoms to the safest environment:
1. Outpatient Visits
Regular periodic appointments (e.g., weekly therapy or doctor visits) while child attends regular school.
2. Intensive Outpatient (IOP)
Multiple hours of structured therapy on several days a week, but the child lives normally at home.
3. Day Treatment (PHP)
Full-day intensive hospital-based educational and therapy program. Child returns home every evening.
4. Acute Inpatient Care
24-hour safe medical supervision in a hospital. This is reserved strictly for short-term crisis stabilization.
Least restrictive care is always best: keep life as normal as possible while maintaining safety.
Facilitator Guide
Continuum of Care
• Clinical Criteria: Level of care is determined by risk, functioning level, and immediate family capacity.
• Concept: Ensure parents understand that intensive care carries disruption risks and is only indicated when safety is failing.
• Sorting: Present fictional cases for sorting activity.
Slide 5 of 8
Charuma Co.
23–31 min
Partnering with Schools
Schools and doctors serve your child in different, very important ways. Knowing the difference helps us get better support:
School Supports
• Focuses on learning access
• Uses accommodations (504s, IEPs)
• Provides classroom behavioral logs
• DONT require a clinical diagnosis
Clinical Treatment
• Focuses on medical/mental health
• Provides diagnostic evaluations
• Uses clinical therapies & medications
• DONT guarantee school supports
Meeting Rule: Bring a one-page summary of pattern logs. Always establish: who does what, by when, and how we measure.
• Efficacy: Care coordination across schools and pediatric clinicians significantly reduces child functional impairment.
• Meeting Prep: Support parents to lead with observable data.
Slide 6 of 8
Charuma Co.
31–39 min
Our Family Safety Plan
A safety plan is an active list of skills and contacts to use during hard moments. It replaces useless verbal promises with real, practical steps:
1
Warning Signals
Notice first cues: changes in voice, actions, or physical tension.
2
Coping Strategies
What can the child do on their own to soothe (e.g., cool water, music).
3
Trusted Adults
Adults outside parents (e.g., relatives, coaches) who act as a safety net.
4
Securing Our Home
Removing access to highly dangerous items (e.g., locking medication/weapons).
Crucial: A safety plan is meant for times when symptoms are elevated, but safe management is still possible. If danger is immediate, call 911 or go to the ER.
Facilitator Guide
Safety Planning
• Evidence-Based: Frame this in Stanley-Brown Safety Planning protocols.
• Lethal Means: Counsel on locking prescription medications and firearms. Means restriction is the highest efficacy crisis reduction tool.
• Contraindication: Discourage verbal contracts.
Slide 7 of 8
Charuma Co.
39–45 min
Our 30-Day Family Plan
Change works best when we start small. For the next month, pick no more than two realistic, behavioral goals for your home:
1. Clear Outcomes
Instead of "Feel happy", try: "Put dirty laundry in the basket before screening time." Connect outcomes to measurable behaviors.
2. Parent Action
Set your own target: "I will deliver instructions once in clear steps and validate emotional responses without raising my voice."
"The best plan is not the thickest folder. It is the plan your family can find, understand, and use under stress."
Facilitator Guide
Family Blueprint
• Behavioral Frame: Ensure parents understand behavioral parenting training (PMT) concepts: target child behaviors and concurrent parent actions.
• Pacing: 43–45 min. Deliver the course evaluation forms and coordinate local clinical triage lists.
Slide 8 of 8
Recording Script
Read Aloud Script
"Ask five questions... First, is this a clear change?... Second, how intense is it?... Third, how long has it lasted?... Fourth, is it causing distress?... Fifth, is it interfering with sleep, school, friendships, or basic responsibilities?... Record patterns, not proof of a diagnosis."
Slide 3 of 3
Parent Task: Build an "Approach Ladder." List the final goal at the top and 5 smaller steps underneath. Let the child rank the steps.
Golden Rule: "Avoidance brings short-term relief, but teaches long-term fear."
Recording Script
Read Aloud Script
"Begin with validation: 'I believe that this feels scary.'... Then communicate confidence: 'I also believe you can take one small step, and I will help you.'... Use an approach ladder. Put the feared task at the top and list smaller steps underneath... Praise courage and effort."
