Sunny Days Orientation

1. Sunny Days Orientation

2. A little history about Sunny Days • Established in 1994 by Joyce Salzberg MSW and Donna Maher RN, two women who have become recognized leaders and innovators in the field of Early Intervention • Largest provider of EI Services in New Jersey • Provides services nationally, in New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and California

3. Sunny Days CEO’s • Joyce Salzberg, holds a BA and MSW from Temple University. She has over 40 years of experience in the field of healthcare and developmental disabilities. She was the past Associate Executive Director of United Cerebral Palsy of NJ. She has been a member of the SICC since 1998, where she chaired several sub-committees. She has also served on numerous charitable boards, oversight committees and industry advocacy groups

4. Sunny Days CEO’s • Donna Maher, RN is a graduate of Misericordia Nursing School. Prior to establishing Sunny Days, Donna was a Labor and Delivery Nurse at Albert Einstein Hospital. She has also worked as a school nurse with children with disabilities as well as a nurse and Director of Development in an Early Intervention program . She served on the NJ State Quality Assurance Task Force and Board of Directors at a state REIC

5. Our Mission • To provide quality Evaluative and Therapeutic Early Intervention Services. Our family-centered philosophy supports the family as well as the most significant component to the child’s progress. To foster the family’s ability to promote their child’s development to their fullest potential. • To empower family to incorporate support strategies into their daily routines which will maximize the child’s ability to participate in their environment.

6. Who’s Who at Sunny Days? Program Director - NJ • Karen Olanrewaju BSN, RN 732-761-0088 kolanrewaju@sunnydays.com

7. Who’s Who at Sunny Days?Clinical Educators • Kathleen V. Flatley, MS, OTR 201-512-0030 kflatley@sunnydays.com • Jacqueline Jupin-Manzi RNC-NIC, MHA 732-223-0211 jjupin-manzi@sunnydays.com • Carola d’Emery, PhD, PT 732-761-0088 cdemery@sunnydays.com • Scott Rieger, MA, NCC, BCBA 908-415-2143 srieger@sunnydays.com

8. Role of Clinical Educators (CE’s) • Provide practitioner orientation and trainings • Conduct routine and/or targeted observations of practitioner sessions in person or via facetime • Function in supervisory/mentoring capacity • Offer suggestions and help practitioners problem solve cases, however IFSP team has final say on all IFSP decisions! • Parents can decline to have a CE observe a session and should know CE’s are there to observe practitioner. If parent requests feedback on child, CE’s may provide their impressions

9. Who’s Who at Sunny Days?Regional Administrators Debbie Zielinski 732-335-3720 dzielinski@sunnydays.com Marisa LaMonte Paulsen 732-905-7737 mlamonte-paulsen@sunnydays.com Essex Union Autism Services (Central and Northern NJ) Atlantic/Burlington Camden/Cape May Glouster/Hunterdon Monmouth Autism Services (Southern Region) Sheryl Newman 732-905-8939 snewman@sunnydays.com Sarah Martin 201-784-7577 smartin@sunnydays.com Bergen Hudson Morris Passaic Sussex Mercer Middlesex Ocean Somerset

10. Who’s Who at Sunny Days? Regional Administrators Targeted Evaluation Teams Hunterdon/ Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May and Exit Evals in Union and Passaic Audrey Searles 609-489-0661 asearles@sunnydays.com Hudson, Morris, Sussex, Bergen-Back up and Exit Evals in Bergen Helen Godfrey 845-356-7566 hgodfrey@sunnydays.com

11. Regional Administrators • Assign and manage referrals/cases • Primary contact people once you begin providing services. • Please note contact info which can also be found on our website and will be sent to you with your contract as well

12. Other Staff • You may receive emails/calls from HR, Billing or Program Departments • All Regional Administrators (RA’s) have assistants who you may deal with as well • Service coordinators are not SD personnel. Check with your RA if you have any concerns about service coordinator or family requests

13. Sunny Days • Sunny Days NJ serves children from birth to 3 through the Early Intervention System • Our sister company, the Sunshine Center, provides services to children privately - both home and center based

14. NJ Early Intervention (EI) System • NJEIS receives funding from the federal government and must comply with Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) • NJ Dept. of Health (DOH) is the lead agency that administers the program • Most directives we provide are based on need to comply with IDEA or NJEIS policies

15. NJEIS • Four grant funded organizations called Regional Early Intervention Collaboratives (Southern, Mid-Jersey Cares, Family Link, Helpful Hands) • REIC’s plan and coordinate NJ’s EI system at the regional/community level • Provider agencies and service coordination units

16. EI Services at Public Expense • Child Find • Procedural Safeguards • Service Coordination • Evaluation and Assessment • Individual Family Service Plan Development (IFSP) • Review and Transition Planning

17. EI Services not at Public Expense • All other direct service is subject to a family cost share • Cost share is based on income and family size • Suspensions may occur for non-payment. You will be notified if services must stop and when they can be resumed.

18. Early Intervention Process • Referral –NJEIS-06 • Intake • Eligibility Evaluation NJEIS-02 and NJEIS-07 • Family Information Gathering • IFSP Development • Assignment of EI Agency NJEIS-09 • Service Provision NJEIS-16 • Direct Service • IFSP Reviews (including an annual BDI-2) NJEIS-11 , NJEIS-13 • Transition out of EI Policy NJEIS-20

19. Identification and Referral • Referral is made to SCHS when there is a concern. NJEIS-06 1-888-653-4463 or 1-888-njeiinfo • Family consent is required prior to the referral • Family consent is not needed prior to referral in: • Substantiated cases of abuse • Cases where an infant has been exposed to drugs prenatally NJEIS-01

20. Evaluation for EligibilityNJEIS-07 • Family provides consent • Service Coordinator coordinates evaluation • Evaluation team is multidisciplinary • Must be completed within 45 days of referral • State using Battelle Developmental Inventory (BDI-2) for initial evaluations

21. Eligibility CriteriaNJEIS-02 • Two categories of eligibility • Developmental Delay • Conditions with High Probability of Delay

22. EligibilityNJEIS-07 • Developmental Delay is measured as 2.0 standard deviations below the mean in one developmental area or 1.5 standard deviations below the mean in two or more developmental areas. (Can also be documented with Informed Clinical Opinion) • Conditions with High Probability of Resulting in Delay – must be confirmed in report from physician, advanced practice nurse or psychologist (includes 10 presumptive diagnoses which don’t require the signed statement or report)

23. 10 Presumptive Diagnoses • Down Syndrome • Fetal Alcohol Syndrome • Hearing Impairment • Vision • Autism • Spina Bifida • Cerebral Palsy • Trisomy 13,18, etc • Fragile X • Hydrocephalous

24. Initial IFSP Meeting and DevelopmentNJEIS-07 • Done within 45 days of referral • Conducted at a place convenient for the family • Conducted in native language of the family. • During this meeting the team develops child and family outcomes and decides upon strategies and services necessary to meet those outcomes

25. IFSP Participants • Family • Service Coordinator • Evaluation Team Members • Family can also choose to include other relatives, daycare staff or advocate, etc. if they choose

26. Provision of Services • Family provides written consent for services NJEIS-16 • Family provided with agreed upon services • Services provided in Natural Environments and are consistent with the outcomes (goals)/strategies of the IFSP • Services are reviewed periodically and eligibility is re-determined annually NJEIS- 13,11,19

27. Practitioner Responsibilities for Service Provision • Respond to the RA as soon as possible indicating your availability to fill the service • Cases will appear under “My Caseload” field on the EIMS (when fully implemented) Family contact information is listed under demographics. • If accepting case, contact family to schedule and immediately notify your RA of scheduled start date. We have 12 calendar days from agency assignment to complete first session per NJEIS-16 • If any time has passed since RA was assigned case you may need to start sooner to meet EI timelines. Best to schedule ASAP

28. Provision of ServicesNJEIS-16 • Support all outcomes to the maximum extent possible when appropriate and safe. All practitioners must be aware of all outcomes • Communication between multiple practitioners is encouraged

29. NJ EIMS • NJ is using the Early Intervention Management System (EIMS) database for case management since 12/1/17 – system still in transition – some things are still being done on paper until EIMS fully implemented • Run by Public Consulting Group (PCG)

30. NJ EIMS • Practitioners will receive an email with a password to access the site • Password needs to be changed every 90 days • PCG Call Center 1-844-378-2936 • Can contact them for help with logging issues M-F 8 am to 5 pm

31. NJ EIMS • On demand training webinars can be found after logging into EIMS. https://njeis.pcgus.com/njei. • After signing in to the site, click training link under announcements.

32. NJ EIMS • You can also access the training modules through the billing portal • Go to EI Billing Portal tab (on green menu bar) that takes you to NJEIS Fiscal Portal where you click on “Help” and from drop down menu choose “Training” to access Webinars

33. NJ EIMS • Please view “Intro to EI Management System” webinar and “Practitioner Training” webinar • TET members also view “Evaluation Training” webinar • No documentation of attendance or certificate is required

34. NJ EIMS • Every session you complete must be logged in the EIMS or the agency will not be paid. This includes IFSP meetings TPC’s and all TET services • During transition anything done on paper will need to be logged in EIMS eventually!

35. Contact Log Entries • Document initial contact with families on the parent contact log feature of the EIMS database when scheduling a new service • If unable to log in EIMS, document on a paper communication note • Review Policy/Procedure on Communication Note Completion • Please let RA know when your 1st session is scheduled or if you have had difficulty scheduling

36. Contact Log Entries • Every time a contact is made with family a new entry to log must be completed. For example first session rescheduled from 1/16/18 at 11:00 am to 1/16/18 at 4:00 pm due to family conflict. Discussed that ongoing sessions will stay at 11:00 am

37. Contact Log Entries • Follow prompts on EIMS and include description of outcome of contact (Left voice mail on mother’s cell attempting to schedule first visit for Tuesday 1/9/18 at 11:00 am) or (Spoke to mother and offered Tuesday 1/9/18 at 11:00 am. Parent stated that she has a doctor’s appointment but could start the following Tuesday 1/16/18. Scheduled first visit for 1/16/18 at 11:00 am) • Must provide details of conversation in the notes field of contact log

38. Contact Log Entries • The EIMS also has a contact log for documenting non-family contact • Can use for SC contacts, RA, interpreter, other practitioners, providers outside of the system (with proper consent), etc.

39. Non Parent contact Note from NJ EIMS

41. Schedule • Please set up a consistent schedule with the family • Document on the EIMS if there will be any changes to your schedule with the family

42. IFSP Document • Review IFSP before starting services • Must understand outcomes to be addressed • New IFSP’s will be in EIMS • Read service pages to see what services child is receiving (legal document between families and NJEIS)

43. Frequency and Length • Must provide services at agreed upon frequency and length • Example – If IFSP says 3 x 60 minutes can’t do 2 x 90 minute sessions • If there is to be an ongoing change a meeting and IFSP re-write must occur • The EIMS system will not allow you to log in sessions outside of the assigned frequency and length

44. Natural Environments • Means more than simply home based services! • Natural Environments are the philosophy of the NJEIS and IDEA • Caregivers must always be present during a session. Caregivers should be actively participating and engaged with their child throughout the entire session • Eliminate or minimize bringing in toys or other items that limit parental carry over

45. Natural Environments • Children receiving Early Intervention services in a daycare setting should not be removed from the classroom • Practitioners should work within the routines of the center, and facilitate the child to participate in the activities

46. Natural Environments • Settings that are natural or typical for the child’s age peers who have no disabilities • Outcomes are contextualized around daily routines or times of day

47. Location of Services • When going out into the community never drive with or take the family • Ongoing location change will be reflected on IFSP – daycare vs. home • If daycare is closed or family schedule changes can do a session at home instead at family request

48. Documentation • All documentation not done through EIMS must be in ink • If a mistake is made, cross out with one line with your initials next to it. You may not use white out!! • All forms should have dates, month/date/year, and a.m. or p.m. must be indicated. Please list exact times in and out • Signatures are required on all consents or log verifications. Initials are not acceptable

49. Session Notes • Will be completed through the EIMS • Must complete three fields; 1. Who was present?; 2. Successes and concerns since last visit; 3. Intervention Techniques (Routines and Strategies). • Also log missed sessions on EIMS – follow prompts to indicate why session was missed - and enter narrative explanation

50. Session Notes • There is also a section at the bottom for additional comments “Today’s Progress/Highlights/Overall Comments” – use this section to add additional information not captured in other 3 fields. Any discussions that occur during session about switched days, etc. can go here. • *for cases not yet in EIMS complete paper notes