Welcome
to Unit 1:
Service Coordination Overview
Congratulations
on your decision to work as a service coordinator in Birth to 3! You have
chosen a very challenging and rewarding career. You will find in many ways
that the service coordinator is the cornerstone of the early intervention
program and a family’s key to success. Before we discuss the specifics
of service coordination in Birth to 3, take a moment to review the basics
of Wisconsin’s Birth to 3 Program by reading two documents that you
will also share with families. These documents – Wisconsin’s
Early Intervention Program Brochure and the Families Are the Foundation
Booklet should be located in hard copy in your program office. Please
also note Wisconsin’s Birth to 3 Guiding Principles.
The
Federal IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act) law
and the Wisconsin Administrative Code, HFS 90, mandate that each family whose
infant or toddler is eligible for services from the state's early intervention
program be assigned a service coordinator. But, what is service coordination?
Service coordination is … finding out what
a family needs and helping them get it. (Morton, 1988)*
Service coordination is an active process for
implementing the IFSP that promotes and supports a family’s capacities
and competencies to identify, obtain, coordinate, monitor, and evaluate resources
and services to meet its needs. (McGonigel, Kaufman, Johnson, 1991)*
We know from families that service coordination is a highly valued
early intervention service that is essential to 1) supporting families through
the early years after learning that their child has developmental delays or
disabilities, 2) assisting families in navigating complex service systems
to find necessary resources on behalf of their child, and perhaps most importantly,
3) building the capacity of families and empowering them to access services
upon leaving Birth to 3. We have learned that service coordination plays out
differently for each family, depending on their child’s particular needs
and the contextual circumstances within the family. We also know that families’
needs change throughout their child’s involvement with early intervention
and that service coordination varies over time.
Use the above three points
to help you explain your service coordination role to families and establish
the foundation that caregivers are full decision-making partners on the early
intervention team.
We frequently hear families describe a sense of loss when they
leave the Birth to 3 Program and no longer have a service coordinator. The
good news is that more programs and communities are investing in the continuation
of some form of service coordination for families beyond the age of three.
However, it is still important for early intervention service coordinators
to view the outcome of their work as assisting families in building on their
strengths so that when they leave Birth to 3, they have increased skills and
confidence to support their child’s development, advocate for their
child’s needs, and navigate future systems. A service coordinator accomplishes
this not by attempting to “fix” a family, but by listening,
supporting and assisting families in accessing resources. As early intervention
service coordinators, we must recognize that we are only with families for
a short amount of time, and that we may be one of the first professionals
that a family encounters. Over time, families will likely interact with dozens
of professionals. Our role is to make an early, good impression that
“help is available”, and to recognize that the family will always
be the first, ongoing and long-term coordinator of services, resources and
supports for their child and family.
Federal
law lists the seven functions of service coordinators in their work
with infants and toddlers who have special needs and their families. These
include:
You
might consider that the main responsibilities of a service coordinator
are to:
- Build relationships with families by listening
and asking good questions.
- Facilitate the Individualized Family Service
Plan (IFSP) process.
- Coordinate the provision of services, including
transitions.
How caregivers and service
coordinators work together in the service coordination process can vary from
person to person, program to program, county to county, and state to state.
There is no one approach to service coordination. The following are the predominant
models of service coordination being used in early intervention. It is
important to understand the strengths and challenges of each model and which
model(s) are being used in your program. Certain approaches may be more appropriate
to use with an individual family.
-
Co-service
Coordination
- Parent and provider formally agree to share in the responsibilities of
the seven functions of service coordination. The options are discussed and
the outcome for co-service coordinator is jointly agreed upon.
-
Interim
Service Coordination
- The program or agency initially and temporarily assigns a person to coordinate
services with a family. The length of involvement of this person will vary,
but typically it extends from the point of referral through the development
or up to the point of development of the IFSP. The responsibility of service
coordination is then transferred to another person on the early intervention
team.
-
Position
Dedicated as Service Coordinator only - The dedicated service coordinator has sole responsibility to
carry out service coordinator responsibilities. They do not provide any
additional early intervention services. The program or agency may hire the
service coordinator directly, or agencies outside the early intervention
program may hire the service coordinator to account for possible conflicts
of interest.
-
Direct
Service Provider as Service Coordinator - A physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech pathologist,
teacher, nurse, or other direct service provider working closely with the
family acts as both the service coordinator and the service provider.
-
Parent
as own Service Coordinator
- The parent agrees to take on the functions of service coordination without
the assistance of a paid individual from the program or agency. The parents
essentially waive their rights to having a service coordinator as specified
in Part C of IDEA. The program or agency, however, remains responsible for
providing service coordination if needed and must list a service coordinator’s
name on the IFSP along with documentation of the parent’s decision
to take on the service coordinator’s role.
-
Combination
of Models within a Program
- A program uses more than one approach in the provision of service coordination.
Approaches may be varied or blended to best meet program resources and preferences
of the families.*
According
to Wisconsin Administrative Code (HFS 90) - (HTML version)
a service coordinator may be a person from the list of qualified personnel
in
s. HFS 90.08 (3) (b),
another person with experience and training indicated under subd.
1.
or a parent facilitator.
Federal
Law (Part
C of IDEA) and
the Wisconsin Administrative Code
(HFS 90)
include service coordinator guidelines. Click on these links to access the
specific portion of the laws that relate to service coordination responsibilities.
This information, and Additional Resources, is available on the Wisconsin Birth to 3 Training
and Technical Assistance
web site. Where?
- Left tool bar: Click on Birth to 3 Basics
- Click on Service Coordination (Be
sure to review the items under "The Big Picture")
- For an overview describing the Wisconsin
Birth to 3 Program, of which service coordination is a key component
for facilitating family participation, review the Orientation
to Best Practices slide show. This may be best viewed with your supervisor
for additional explanation.
Application
Station: Checking Your Skills
Getting
to know families and how to complete the necessary steps within the Birth
to 3 process will be outlined in further detail in Units
2 and 3 of this learning module.
For now, think about how to tailor your learning so that you get the most
out of the time that you spend with this module. Complete Application Station: Checking Your Skills to
find out how.
*McGonigel,
M.J., Kaufmann, R. K., & Johnson, B., H., Eds. (1991). Guidelines and
recommended practices for the individualized family service plan (2nd
ed.). Bethesda, MD: Association for the Care of Children's Health
*Morton
*
Pathways: A Training and Resource Guide for Enhancing Skills in Early Intervention
Service Coordination
These
modules were developed from a combination of materials, including: