OKEECHOBEE — A new option for children with autism or a related developmental disability is now available in Okeechobee County.

ABA Therapy Solutions, LLC has been serving children in the Okeechobee area for several years now, but clinical director Linda Peirce is happy to announce the opening of a clinic in Okeechobee.

Prior to the opening, children were seen either in school or in their homes. Now, there is a third option for some of the youngest clients.

The facility will be utilized to work with children between the ages of 2 and 6. Older children, up to age 21, will still be seen at home or in school. Peirce said the clinic can comfortably host about 10 children. Right now, they have 5 enrolled.

The purpose of the service is to help children with developmental disabilities meet goals specific to their own needs. One child might need to learn to express himself without hitting. Another might need to learn to share his toys.

According to the brochure, the center offers:

• Adaptive, language, developmental and behavioral assessments,
• Verbal behavior — communication and language development,
• Self-help skills, toilet training, dressing and hygiene,
• Food aversions and selectivity,
• Social skills/play skills/leisure skills,
• Safety skills,
• Independent living skills,
• Pre-academic skills,
• Decreasing problem behavior.

The services offered by ABA Therapy Solutions are almost always covered by insurance, and Peirce said they accept all insurance offered in the area including Medicaid.

Peirce is a board-certified behavior analyst. She started the company in 2012 with a goal in mind to teach children ways to change their behavior as needed to function in society. “Typically, a child with autism has deficits socially and in communication,” she explained. “Sometimes, there are other challenging behaviors as well — tantrums, hitting. We work with them to change those behaviors by increasing their communication, teaching functional play skills and as they get older, functional leisure skills.”

They use a lot of positive reinforcement to help increase these skills as they are learned.

“ABA therapy is considered the number one treatment for autism now,” she said.

ABA Therapy Solutions provides therapy, not only in Okeechobee, but also in Palm Beach, Martin, Saint Lucie and Indian River Counties.

In order to enroll your family member, you must have a diagnosis from a doctor, referral and approval from your insurance company. Working together with doctors and parents, they will design a treatment plan to fit the needs of each individual client. They work with family members too, coaching them in the care of and teaching of a child with these needs. All insurances want participation by the parents so that eventually, the family can take care of the client without help from the center, she explained.

Assessments and treatment plans are written by board-certified behavior analysts. They are trained in applied behavior analysis. Typically, the treatment plan will have about 20 goals on it. This is submitted to the insurance company for approval.

Once this is done, a registered behavior technician will take over. This person has taken a 40-hour training and has a national credential. Spread out over all the counties, they have about 60 technicians, she said. This person will go into the schools and/or homes.

Anyone interested in applying for this position must have a high school diploma and complete the online training. They must take a test when they finish the course. This must be renewed every year.