Lost Without Translation
"Your ABA will be provided by an RBT under a BCBA per the IPP and IEP BIP."
UMMMM, WHAAAATTT???
While attending a special education Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting as the representative of the Educationally Related Mental Health Services (ERMHS) Wraparound provider, I listened (and intervened) as professionals used shorthand and acronyms to speak to a student’s father about his son’s needs, goals, strengths (thank goodness!), and his social-emotional, behavioral, academic, and attendance challenges.
The school and Wraparound team had done the important work of bringing everyone to the table, recognizing how much this single father—working nights and raising two children with special needs—was struggling and in need of support. But what unfolded in that room was, at times, alienating.
I watched this father—exhausted from an overnight shift, having rushed to get home, get his children to school and himself to this meeting—try to keep up with the rapid, acronym-laced conversation happening around him. The team spoke briefly about his child’s strengths, and at much greater length about their difficulties. As I leaned over and whispered clarifications, trying to translate in real-time, the team continued with their well-rehearsed delivery—standard for those who do this day in and day out, but nearly impossible for a layperson to follow.
The unfortunate part? No one seemed to notice the father’s fatigue. Or his silence. Or my efforts to support him.
It was when the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) service representative rattled off that alphabet soup of a sentence—“Your ABA will be provided by an RBT under a BCBA per the IPP and IEP BIP”—that I asked to pause the meeting.
Looking over at the father, his eyes were glazed, his head gently nodding. It was clear he had mentally checked out. I suggested we take a break, then offered him some water and gave him space to reflect. I then asked the team to slow down, explain services and acronyms in plain language, and give this parent the time he deserved to process the overwhelming information. I even suggested reconvening the meeting if time became an issue.
Some appreciated the pause—someone finally acknowledging the human need in the room. Others may have felt momentarily thrown off by the shift in pace or the change in routine. But here’s the thing: what matters most is the youth’s and the family’s success. And that cannot happen if families feel like bystanders instead of participants.
Be the Disruptor
As you go out there, continuing the good work you do, be the disruptor if you must. You might not always be the most popular person in the room, but you’ll be doing the most important work: ensuring children and families feel seen, heard and included.
Disruptors are leaders. They’re thought-creators and mind-changers. The work you do with families sends a ripple far beyond that single meeting, touching lives you may never meet.
And yes, acronyms are useful… but only when everyone at the table understands them. So take a moment, take a breath—and speak in ways that welcome others in.
Untangling a Few Common Acronyms
Here are a few shorthand terms to consider for this Spring issue! We picked these particular acronyms because they are so often confused with others. Read more to learn why.
WRAP
Not to be confused for Wrap, an abbreviation for Wraparound, WRAP stands for Wellness Recovery Action Plan. WRAP is a method of creating a self-developed plan to recovery that is supported by a peer community. WRAP was developed in 1997 by a group of people who had been dealing with difficult feelings and behaviors for many years. They were working together to feel better and get on with their lives. You can read more about them at wellnessrecoveryactionplan.com.
CQI
This stands for Continuous Quality Improvement, a framework for organizations to define and examine strengths and problems within their service delivery practices and then test, improve and learn from solutions on a cyclical basis. In the realm of child welfare, CQI uses data to improve services and outcomes. For high-fidelity Wraparound, CQI frameworks monitor the practice of Wraparound to ensure it leads to desired outcomes. The term CQI is often confused with QA (quality assurance) and sounds similar to but has no connection whatsoever to QI (Qualified Individual). You can read more about CQI at childwelfare.gov/topics/casework-practice/continuous-quality-improvement-cqi/?top=294
QI
QI stands for Qualified Individual. In child welfare, all children and youth who are being recommended for a higher level of care (such as a Short-term Residential Treatment Program [STRTP] or a community care treatment facility) and are required to first be assessed by a Qualified Individual to ensure this placement would be appropriate to meet the child or youth’s needs. You can read more about QI at: cdss.ca.gov/Portals/9/Additional-Resources/Letters-and-Notices/ACLs/2021/21-113.pdf?ver=2021-10-06-134855-840
If you have a suggestion for an acronym that needs to be shared, please submit it to Tamara Trejos at tvtrejos@ucdavis.edu to be featured in an upcoming newsletter!