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At Light on Path, we have designed a thorough and multi-layered system of supervision and management oversight. We fully trust our employees’ professional judgment and ability to make independent, accurate, and objective decisions in terms of assessment, plan of care, and ongoing intervention. However, we also firmly believe in a centralized approach in order to maximize the efficiency and depth of the consumer-therapist relationship and minimize the “trial-and-error”-based approach to matching the consumer with the professional. Henceforth, we would like to refer to the entire family unit as the consumer since the unique nature of this particular type of business/professional endeavor dictates that it is not only the infant/child who receives our services but also everyone who is involved with the child’s care. 

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Upon the initial referral from the Early Start Program, regardless of the type of services/assessments ordered, either the Director or the Supervisor or both members of our executive team (depending on the specifics of the case) will make the initial contact with the family. We will follow that with an introductory home visit/home assessment for the purposes of presenting our company and familiarizing ourselves with the family’s and the child’s needs, demographics, specific concerns, expectations, and social-emotional specifics of the consumer, among other things. This initial visit will allow us to make the most optimal decision in terms of staff/therapist assignment to the consumer for assessment and intervention. We have adopted this approach from the Home Health System where the case is opened by the charge nurse upon the initial visit to the patient’s home. In this case, the orders come from the doctor or the hospital and the Home Health Agency must carry out assessments and intervention based upon those orders. A binder containing the agency’s scope of practice, philosophy, patient’s rights, communication and sign-in/out sheets, vital signs sheets, etc. will be left in the patient’s home, and all of the professionals involved in the care of this patient will be expected to use it for communication with patient/family/fellow professionals as well as to document education/training and to place any educational materials.

 

In our case, the referral and the orders for assessments and intervention come from the Early Start Division of the North Los Angeles County Regional Center, and we intend to carry them out diligently and to the highest professional/moral/ethical/administrative standards. Compelling evidence suggests that communication is the key to the formation of a seamless relationship between the Head Agency (Early Start in our case), the consumers, administrative staff, and field professionals. Upon our initial/introductory visit to the consumer, we will leave an informational/communication binder containing our company’s basic information, our standards of practice, services and resources available, contact information, etc. One section of the binder will contain pages for the consumer to communicate with the therapists and our administrative staff regarding any questions, concerns, newly formed goals, ideas on areas of emphasis relevant to the family’s current situation, as well as any medical/health updates, doctor’s notes, etc. Another section will contain pages for our field therapists to enter their daily/visit notes, quick summaries of their session with the consumer, progress toward goals and objectives, the consumer’s state of participation, education/training provided, etc. Any relevant home program/instruction sheets, informational brochures, etc. will also be contained in this section. In addition to the initial/introductory visit to the family, the same member of the administrative team will make monthly/bi-monthly supervisory visits to the consumer’s home and will rely on the notes/information within the binder to track the consumer-therapists dynamics, and to discuss anything that is relevant/concerning the family. This way we will be able to maintain the flow of the relationship between the consumer, the Early Start Program, and the Light on Path. As stated above, efficient, concise, and timely communication between all parties in this enterprise is the key to a productive, effective, and conflict-free journey that we intend to walk with our Consumers. Therefore, a succinct summary will be sent to respective Early Start counselor on a monthly or bi-monthly basis following a supervisory home visit stating the consumer’s progress toward goals, continuing plan of care, and any other relevant updates.