Potential support services planning team members

The following are sample role descriptions for people who could contribute or be members of the support services planning team. The list is not all encompassing nor is it meant to restrict the kinds of participation which may occur. Some roles are described in more detail than others, since the possible contribution of certain individuals, who may not have traditionally been part of the support services planning process, may not be well known.

Addictions Counselor, Addictions Services

Coordinates alcohol, drugs and gambling education

Coordinates prevention, treatment and referral services

Prepares and provides educational and training programs that meet the needs of various community and professional groups

Provides information, resources and consultation to various professionals and agencies

Provides assessment, treatment and aftercare services to individuals and/or their families who have been impacted by alcohol, drugs and/or gambling problems

Provides an intensive 21 day provincial impatient treatment program

Promotes a holistic, effective and efficient approaches to addictions by demonstrating leadership and stimulating cooperation and coordination between agencies and individuals offering prevention, treatment or rehabilitative services

Audiologist

Conducts specific assessments and subsequent diagnosis to identify children/youth with hearing loss or auditory processing problems following a referral

Provides appropriate counseling, follow-up tests, and rehabilitation (including the fitting of appropriate amplification devices) when necessary

Participates as a member of the support services planning team when appropriate

Provides consultation and advice to parents, teachers and other professionals

Closely linked with Itinerant Teachers for the Hearing Impaired for those "hard of hearing" students who have been fitted with amplification

Refers to other professionals when appropriate

Offers inservices, often in conjunction with other related professionals, such as representatives from the School for the Deaf or itinerant teachers, etc. regarding hearing, cases of hearing loss, types of hearing loss, amplification, communication and classroom management strategies for the hearing impaired and students with auditory processing problems, etc.

Behavior Management Specialist (of the Community Behavioral Services Program)

Operated by the Community Behavioral Services Program through the Department of Human Resources and Employment

Offers a community-based behavioral support and training program serving children and adults with a developmental disability and an accompanying intellectual impairment, as outlined by the American Association on Mental Retardation (1992), who exhibit significant behavioral concerns

Behavioral Management Specialist's (BMS) training focuses on behavioral and developmental psychology

The BMS offers support and training to families in the home setting

Can provide consultation around behavioral interventions in the classroom setting with parental permission

Can provide consistency in application of interventions between the school and home environment, with parental permission

Will receive referrals from the teacher for service, providing parents are in agreement with the referral

The BMS would not participate in the actual implementation of interventions but may participate and provide technical support and assistance as school personnel design and implement programs in a school setting

Child Management Specialist (of the Direct Home Services Program)

Operated by the Direct Home Services Program through the Department of Human Resources and Employment

Provides service to families where one or more of their children, aged 0 to 5 years are considered to be at risk or demonstrate significant developmental delay in any one of the areas of: learning ability, language, physical, social or self-help skills

Provides early and consistent developmental and family supportive services

Receives referrals from anyone provided the family supports the referral

Assists with the transition from home-based intervention to school programs

With the family's permission, shares current information regarding the child's level of skill in five areas: physical, self-help, social, academic and communication

Provides written reports, visits schools and attends support service planning team meetings to share information

Classroom/Subject Teacher

Collects and keeps records of data relating to the child's strengths and needs through observation and formal/informal assessment

Collaborates with colleagues and liaises with parents regarding assessment and strategies to meet the child's need prior to referral to the support services planning team

Implements and keeps records of the results of specific instructional strategies targeted to meet the child's needs at the pre-referral stage

May be involved in making a referral to the support services planning team where warranted

Presents data concerning the child's strengths and needs at the supports services planning team meeting or supplies a written or oral report to another representative

Assists in writing the teaching component of the ISSP for those areas where he/she has responsibility for implementation

Implements those portions of the ISSP for which s/he has been designated responsibility

Monitors and records the child's/youth's progress

Coordinator of Student Support Services

Provides consultation on assessment for children with exceptionalities

Provides consultation and advice on programming and instructional issues

Can assist with procedures for documenting children under specific provincial funding categories

May assist in accessing/providing; professional development, materials and/or resources in specific areas of exceptionality

Dietitian

Assesses nutritional status

Develops nutritional care plan

Educates children, family members and caregivers of the needed changes to nutritional status

Evaluates individualized care plan objectives through follow-up

Adjusts care plan as necessary

Receives referrals on children who may be underweight, overweight, have bowel problems, have feeding problems, have poor eating habits, or children who may need adjustment of tube feeding products or schedule

Guidance Counselor

Provides informal consultation and support to teachers during the pre-referral stage on emotional, behavioral, personal, social, guidance, career and transition related issues

Conducts individualized assessments (including career/vocational assessment) as part of the support services planning process, ensuring that assessment information is current

Presents data on the child's strengths and needs at the support services planning team meeting or provides a written or oral report to a representative

Advises the support services planning team on behavioral approaches, social/emotional/personal/behavioral programming, transitional strategies and supports, and community services which may be accessed by the child/youth

Assists in writing any component of the ISSP for which he/she has been assigned responsibility for implementation

Provides advice, resources and/or support to others involved in writing the ISSP

Provides specific individual counseling to the child in the educational, career and personal/social areas as designated by the ISSP

Provides direct behavioral programming as designated by the ISSP

Implements all portions of the ISSP for which he/she has been designated responsible

Monitors and records the child's/youth's progress

Itinerant Teacher for the Hearing Impaired

Provides instructional support to children/youth with hearing impairments

Ensures access to specialized equipment and materials to support children/youth who are hard of hearing

In conjunction with parents and other personnel, provides assessment of progress of children/youth who are hard of hearing children through a formal and consistent assessment program, supplemented by informal observation

Consults with school personnel, provides advice and guidance to teachers who have hard of hearing children in their classes, secondary to the provision of direct services to their children

Participates in placement decisions in consultation with the support services planning team

Consults with parents, providing information, advice and guidance where required

In conjunction with the ISSP team, develops the schedule of delivery of support services to eligible children/youth

Develops appropriate programs and designs support services as part of the support services planning team

In conjunction with the principal, identifies the services required by the hard of hearing child/youth and ensures delivery with appropriate support agencies (e.g., ENT, Audiology, Speech Pathology, School for the Deaf, Assessment Team, Communication Disorders Clinic, etc.)

Itinerant Teacher for the Visually Impaired

Assesses visual functioning

Recommends any child/youth suspected of having a vision problem to be checked by an ophthalmologist, and ensures that any child with a known visual impairment is seen regularly by an ophthalmologist

Ensures that the child/youth, parents and team members understand the educational implications of that child's specific eye condition and acuity

Provides consultation and advice regarding instructional strategies, appropriate teaching techniques and environmental adaptations for children/youth with visual impairments

Is involved in the development of individual support services plans

Arranges for the provision of appropriate vision-specific teaching aids, specialized equipment and materials

Develops, coordinates and monitors programs that can be implemented and carried out by the child's/youth's caregivers

Provides direct instruction to the child/youth, in cooperation with the team members , when the difficulty experienced is a direct result of visual impairment, and as outlined in the ISSP

Teaches compensatory skills (e.g., braille, use of low vision aids, visual efficiency, listening skills, typing)

Transcribes braille when necessary

Nurse, Community Health

Provides information regarding health issues and appropriate community resources

Provides information to children/youth and caregivers about health/handicapping conditions

Assists with the health component of child's ISSP

Assists with interpretation of health implications on the child's/youth's development and education

Participates in developing/providing safety/injury prevention programs

Assists children/youth and their families in accessing required health services

Provides information, inservice education, expertise and resource materials to assist the other professionals

Provides formal presentations on health issues to children/youth, parent groups and school board personnel

Assesses child's/youth's health in order to provide appropriate interventions

Provides immunizations and screens for hearing and vision problems

Helps child/youth and his/her family become aware of issues which affect their health, and the development of needed resources

Liaises with other agencies and systems to facilitate coordinated care for children/youth and families

Refers to appropriate agencies and organizations

Participates in community development and community programming to increase awareness of public health issues

Nurse, Psychiatric and Mental Health (Community)

Conducts comprehensive holistic assessments for individuals and families that address physical, emotional, behavioral, cognitive, social, cultural and spiritual components

Makes nursing diagnosis and provides preventative, promotive, supportive, rehabilitative and curative interventions to individuals, groups and families

Liaises with other agencies and systems to facilitate coordinated care for children/youth and families

Monitors and evaluates the effect of interventions and revises, in collaboration with the child/family and other team members, the plan of care as required

Provides follow-up and aftercare to clients discharged from inpatient services

Participates in community development and community educational programs to increase mental health awareness

Nurse, Secure Custody Services

Works at Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Centre and Pleasantville Youth Centre, Department of Justice, as a member of the interdisciplinary team providing care and safety to youth in residential secure custody

Responsible to provide a full range of nursing services, including nursing diagnosis and preventative, supportive, rehabilitative, and curative interventions to residents

Monitors and participates in the plan of care, with other members of the team, family, and other professionals

Coordinates the delivery of in-house contracted medical services

Liaises with community health care officials for the procurement of other necessary health services

Provides direct counseling in substance addiction and adolescent sexual deviance

Conducts research, participates in various committees, identifies and addresses staff training needs and program deficiencies

Occupational Therapist

Provides assessment, consultation and intervention

Improves functional status

Translates individual skills into function

Teaches compensatory skills

Selects adaptive equipment and trains in its use (e.g., computers, seating and positioning devices, wheelchairs, school chairs, side-lyers)

Provides advice on modifications to home and school environments (e.g., bathroom equipment, desk height adaptations, etc.)

in areas of:

fine/gross/sensory motor functioning (including prehension, grasp, handwriting/written output, movement, balance coordination, proprioception, kinesthesia)

activities of daily living (including environmental accessibility, eating and drinking, toileting, personal hygiene, dressing, operation of communication devices, transfers, wheelchair mobility, etc.)

transition planning (including work, independent living, community access)

perception (including motor planning, visual-motor, visual-spatial, visual-tracking)

psycho social functioning (including self-esteem, social skills, assertiveness training, anger management, goal setting, coping/stress management techniques)

Parents/Guardians

Liaise with the professional during the pre-referral stage, where applicable

May be involved in making a referral to the support services planning team

Share information regarding their child's strengths, needs and interests, relevant background information as well as their own wishes for their child at the support services planning team meeting

Are full partners in the decision-making processes at support services planning team meetings

Provide consent/acknowledgment as required for assessment, service provision, programming, etc.

Are involved in assisting with the writing of any component of the ISSP in areas for which they have responsibility for implementation

Implement those portions of the ISSP for which they have been designated responsibility

Monitor the child's overall progress

Physician

All physicians who provide services to children and youth from birth to school leaving have valuable information and provide services which are necessary for their health, well-being and growth and development.

Physician, including general practitioners, pediatricians, developmental pediatricians, ontologists, ear/nose/throat specialists, opthamologists:

Conduct assessments, offer diagnoses and provide treatment to any child (and family) who experience an illness or significant health problem within their area of expertise

Arrange and/or provide required medical interventions including admissions to hospital

Arrange referrals to colleagues and allied health professionals

Provide consultative services to other professionals involved/providing services to the child/youth

Participate in discharge planning for children/youth under their care and ensures appropriate follow-up

Physiotherapist

Prevents deformity and maintains/develops gross motor function to maximal levels within limits of physical potential

Deals with movement, ambulation and positioning, in school

Recommends specific devices (e.g., standing braces, ankle splints, crutches, walkers, wheelchairs, school chairs, side-lyers)

Assessments and interventions in the areas of:

- gross motor: balance, incoordination, decreased mobility, abnormal walking patterns, jumping/throwing/kicking skills

- muscle tone: increased or decreased due to neurological problems

- muscle strength: lack or, or weak movements, decreased range of motion

- joint integrity: inflammatory joint problems, joint range, contractures - deformities

- posture: sitting and standing postures, kyphosis, scoliosis, lordosis

- sensory problems: loss of sensation due to neurological problems, proprioceptive kinaesthetic problems

Principal/Vice Principal, Secure Custody Services

Ensures the participation of faculty teachers and instructors in the resident case planning process

Provides administrative and professional support to teachers and instructors in the development of Individualized Educations Plans and the integration of the IEP's with the overall case planning process

Ensures the delivery of a facility based education program ranging from Kindergarten to Level III, adult education, and work experience; coordinates post secondary education placements

Coordinates the in-house academic program to resources in the community and ensure that facility instruction is compatible to community resources to facilitate the resident's return to school/alternate programs after release

Lobbies and collaborates with the School Boards for the reintegration of residents to the regular school system and shares resources with School Boards and other educational facilities, where appropriate

Psychiatrist, Child and Adolescent

Conducts psychiatric and other assessments, diagnoses and provides treatment to any child (and family) who experiences a psychiatric illness or significant mental health problem

Arranges and/or provides required medical interventions including admission to hospital

Provides consultative phone services to general practitioners, school personnel, social workers, nurses, psychologists, daycare workers, parents and others regarding children/youth receiving psychiatric services

Participates in discharge planning for all clients/families and ensures appropriate follow-up

Psychiatrist (Contracted) Secure Custody Services

Conducts psychiatric and other assessments, diagnoses, and provides treatment to any resident who experiences a psychiatric illness or significant mental health problem

Arranges and/or provides required medical interventions including admission to hospital

Provides consultation to facility personnel, including nurse, social worker, youth care worker, psychologist regarding a resident's plan of care and specialized interventions where necessary

May provide specialized interventions for/on behalf of staff, where consent is given, and where appropriate to enhance and facilitate optimal work performance

May deliver staff inservicing, when requested

Psychological Assistant

Conducts psychological and other assessments such as personality, IQ, learning style and neuropsychological

Provides treatment to individuals that includes the different modalities of therapy

Provides consultative services to and liaises with other agencies and individuals

Develops and evaluates programs for clients and families

Psychologist, Clinical

Conducts psychological and other assessments such as personality, I.Q., developmental and neuropsychological assessments and makes appropriate diagnosis

Provides treatment primarily to individuals (but not limited to) that includes psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, pain management, relaxation and social skills training and developmental counseling

Provides consultative services to and liaises with other agencies and individuals

Provides consultative services to schools regarding children entering the system

Offers direct intervention with the child and the family

Develops and evaluates programs for clients and families

Psychologist, Educational

Provides informal consultation/support to teachers and parents/guardians during the pre-referral stage and more formal consultation/support throughout the support services planning process

Conducts individualized psychological/psycho educational assessments as part of the support services planning process ensuring that assessment information is current

Presents data and interprets the results of various assessments at the support services planning team meeting or provides a written or oral report to another member of the team

Advises the support services planning team on strategies, curriculum, approaches, services and supports required by the child

Assists in writing any component of the ISSP for which s/he has been assigned responsibility for implementation

Provides advice, resources and/or support to others involved in writing the ISSP

Implements those portions of the ISSP for which he/she has been designated responsible

Monitors and records student progress

Psychologist, Secure Custody Service

Applies a series of specialized assessments and tests for the development and implementation of therapeutic programs designed to reduce and remediate a variety of emotional, behavioural, learning, developmental, and other problems of residents

Prepares diagnostic reports and notes on progress; modifies treatments and programs as necessary

Participates in multi-disciplinary case conferences; advises and consults on resident's progress; facilitates the establishment of realistic short and long term goals

Conducts staff inservicing and education; develops and maintains liaison with affiliated community

Provides direct clinical counselling and interventions, including research in a clinical speciality or other specialized area of responsibility/need

Recreation Therapist

Assists children with exceptionalities to enhance their social, emotional, intellectual and physical development through leisure/recreational activities

Helps children develop attitudes toward leisure and skills in various activities that will remain a part of their future lifestyle

Assesses children's interests and needs in the area of leisure/recreation

Provides consultation to other team members (e.g., physical education teacher) on appropriate activities, adapted equipment, teaching techniques, disability awareness, information on competitive opportunities (including disability classification for competition)

Provides support for specialized activities (e.g., skiing) enabling children with disabilities to participate as fully as possible

School Administrator (principal or vice-principal)

Provides administrative support to teachers and other educators in their efforts to meet the needs of children

Ensures that appropriate educational personnel form part of the team

Clarifies the specific responsibilities of school based team members

Ensures the full implementation of the school component of the support services plan

Facilitates the use of in-school facilities to conduct support services planning team meetings

Collaborates with the Individual Support Services Manager to ensure that the equipment, materials and human/material resources committed by Education are accessed

Collaborates with the Individual Support Services Manager to ensure that parents are aware of the in-school components of the ISSP and that they sign all necessary educational referral/consent forms

(NOTE - Previous policy delineated the role of chair of thesupport services planning team to the principal or vice-principal. This is now part of the role of the Individual Support Services Manager, a role which may be assigned to any member of the support services planning team. If s/he is on the team, the principal or vice-principal may or may not act in the capacity of Individual Support Services Manager.)

Social Work Supervisor, Secure Custody Services

Employed at the Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Centre, Department of Justice and is responsible for professional social work supervision, social work program management, and consultation for the case management team

Negotiates and administers contractual services for the delivery of specialized treatment programs

Has direct involvement in case assessment, case planning and management

Delivers individual and group counseling/treatment programs

Takes a lead role in functioning of interdisciplinary teams involved in the implementation and evaluation of individual programs for all residents

Social Worker, Child Welfare

Mandated by the Child Welfare Act to intervene in situations where it is felt that a child under the age of 16 may be in need of protection as defined by the Act

Operates under the auspices of the Department of Human Resources and Employment

Referrals come from a variety of sources including self-referrals by family, other professionals such as educators and mental health professionals, and from the community at large

Social worker's initial involvement is primarily in the area of completing an initial assessment with the family to determine whether in fact the children have been or are at risk of maltreatment

If the outcome of the initial assessment reveals that a child is in need of protection, the social worker will then engage the family in a comprehensive assessment of risk which identifies the risk factors and family strengths and an associated case plan which addresses these issues

Where two or more services may be involved, the social worker and family may initiate a support services planning team meeting

In circumstances where individual support services plans are being developed for children who are in the care of the Director of Child Welfare, social workers acting as the legal guardian of the child will participate in the planning

In all other circumstances, the child protection social worker would not participate in individual support services planning without the parents consent

Social Worker, Family and Rehabilitative Services

Advocates with the school or the community on behalf of the child with the disability and his/her family, to ensure that concrete instrumental supports and aids are provided to enable the child to succeed to the best of his/her ability

Assesses the interaction between problems and needs of the child with the disability and the impact on educational supports and school performance

Consults with school personnel on the special needs, social development, emotional and sexual development of the child with a disability

Mediates in the interest of increased awareness and consciousness raising for school personnel and fellow students in an effort to decrease potential bias (e.g., treating a child with a physical disability as if s/he is developmentally delayed)

Provides periodic crisis intervention for the child and his/her family in situations where the crisis impacts other children, teachers and school personnel

Provides and promotes early detection and early intervention of potential problem areas that may be directly related to the disability, and impacting school performance

Counsels the child and family drawing from a rehabilitative knowledge base and perspective

Social Worker, Mental Health

Conducts biopsychosocial assessments with emphasis on family functioning and dynamics and identifies actual and potential problems

Provides a range of therapies to individuals, couples, families and groups including but not limited to adjustment counseling, resource counseling and psychotherapy

Advocates for clients and families and provides leadership in the area of community development and consumer involvement in issues related to mental health

Participates in discharge planning and makes appropriate referrals

Provides a systemic view and ecological perspective on clients and family situations.

Social Worker, Secure Custody Services

Employed at the Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Centre and the Pleasantville Youth Centre, Department of Justice

Operates under the legislative authority of the Young Offenders Act (Canada) and Young Person's Offense Act (NF)

Provides a range of professional social work services to residents of the youth centre, including case assessment, counseling, development of case plans with other facility staff, the young person, and the family, advocates on behalf of residents and the faculty for needed programs and services

Completes assessment of young person's needs and progress and submits same to the Youth Court as PDR or progress report

Provides direct crises intervention and collaborates with and coordinates other services, eg., psychiatric, medical, psychological

Collaborates with community staff on the plan of care while youth is in custody and facilitates the youth's release plan

Social Worker, Youth Corrections

Mandated under the auspices of the Department of Human Resources and Employment to provide services to young persons who come into conflict with the law between their 12th and 18th birthdays

Operates under the legislative authority of the Young Offenders Act (Canada) and the Young Persons Offences Act (NF)

Referrals usually originate from Youth Court, although informal voluntary referrals may be accepted from youth, parents, or other sources

Provides assessments of young person's needs to the Court, in the form of Pre-disposition and other formal reports

Responsible for the delivery of services related to most dispositions (sentences) given by Youth Court, including Probation, Community Service Orders, and Open Custody (Secure Custody and Remand services are the responsibility of the Department of Justice)

May be involved in Alternative Measures Programs, and other community-based preventative strategies

Conducts assessments of needs of young persons and their families, and may collaborate with other agencies in this process

Completes plans of intervention, in conjunction with the youth, parents, and other professionals or agencies, including school authorities
Provides individuals and family counseling, advocacy for services, crisis intervention, etc.

Will be involved in Individual Support Services Planning where the youth is formally referred from Youth Court, or is voluntarily in receipt of services

Implements those portions of the ISSP for which s/he has been designated responsibility

Special Education Teacher (Regular/Resource or Challenging Needs)

Collaborates with the classroom/subject teacher regarding pre-referral monitoring of children, referral to the support services planning team, writing portions of the ISSP and implementation

Provides consultation regarding assessment, instructional strategies and curriculum differentiation for children with exceptionalities

Completes individualized educational assessments for children with exceptionalities

May be involved in making a referral to the support services planning team, where necessary

Shares data concerning the child's strengths and needs at the support services planning team meeting

Facilitates the collaborative efforts of those teachers involved in writing of the teaching component of the ISSP

Implements those portions of the ISSP for which s/he has been designated responsibility

Monitors and records student progress

Speech Language Pathologist

Identifies children/youth with communication problems following a referral

Conducts specific assessment and diagnosis of children's communication problems and their communicative needs; reassesses as necessary

Participates as a member of the support services planning team

Provides direct or indirect therapy

Provides consultation and advice to parents, teachers, and other professionals on speech and/or language related issues

Refers to other professionals as necessary

Offers inservice in the areas of: articulation, phonology, fluency, voice, receptive language, expressive language and pragmatics

Student Assistant

Assists the teacher by contributing information regarding the child's strengths and needs

May attend support services planning team meetings as required

Assists the teacher in providing personal care to children including eating and drinking, lifting, self-care and toileting

Assists with the operation of specialized equipment (e.g., stairtrac, wheelchair, walker)

Accompanies/porters the child to and from classes and school activities

Assists the teacher preparing child-specific materials

Assists with child-specific assistive devices, taking notes, taping lectures and reading

Assists the teacher during emergency procedures

Assists the teacher in meeting the child's needs as outlined in the ISSP

Teacher/Vocational Instructor, Secure Custody Services

Responsible to implement an individualized education plan including vocational instruction, for each assigned resident which considers the individual resident case plan

Participates as an active member of the faculty's multi-disciplinary team in developing the resident's plan of care, intervention and treatment

Collaborates with community teachers on the resident's prior academic record and maintains community linkages to foster academic reintegration upon release

Implements and records specific instructional strategies and monitors and records youth's progress while at the facility

Where a resident's educational needs indicate, facilitates placement into a vocational program/work experience and co-ordinates and monitors resident's progress with the primary service providers

Participates in staff training; identifies program deficiencies and recommends other needed services

Youth Care Worker, Secure Custody Services

Assists and participates in the development and implementation of plan of care, security, and safety of residents

Responsible to observe, supervise, manage, and document the behaviour or young offenders in residential secure custody

Guides and counsels residents in acceptable behaviour, appropriate daily living and social skills; supervises residents for periods of leisure, study, work; escorts residents for medical and other outside appointments, home visits or temporary release

Observes and notes any behavioural, medical or psychological/psychiatric disturbances in residents and initiates appropriate remedial action

Physically intervenes, where appropriate and according to policy guidelines, when presenting behaviour of youth poses an actual or potential threat to the well-being of self, others, property, faculty or is indicative of escape

Actively participates in staff training and meetings, may be required to attend court and drive faculty vehicles

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