Lauren F. Brouwers, Senior Telehealth Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) at Hopebridge Autism Therapy Center, has been named a 2024 Frontline Frontline Honors honoree by Behavioral Health Business.
To become a Frontline honoree, an individual is nominated by their peers. The candidate must be:
- A dedicated, high-performing frontline worker who delivers exceptional experiences and outcomes
- A passionate worker who knows how to put their vision into for the good of their respective industry, the patients and residents they serve, and their families
- An advocate for their industry and their fellow colleagues
Behavioral Health Business recently caught up with Brouwers to discuss their time in the behavioral health industry.
BHB: What drew you to this industry?
Brouwers: Since my younger brother’s Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis 20 years ago, I have known that I wanted to immerse myself in the autism community to become an advocate for those who could not advocate for themselves. My mission as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) is to always ensure that these children are provided with trauma-informed and assent-based therapy that will allow them to continue developing the skills necessary to be as independent and happy as possible.
BHB: What’s your biggest lesson learned since starting to work in the industry?
Brouwers: The biggest lesson I have learned since starting to work in this industry is that behaviors are communication. Whether the child is functionally communicating or engaging in behaviors that present barriers to learning, behaviors are communication. When challenging behaviors occur, it’s important to assess what the behavior is communicating and prompt a functionally equivalent, contextually-appropriate replacement behavior. Approach with compassion and empathy, seek to understand, and guide the patient to appropriate solutions (e.g., self-advocacy).
BHB: What’s your favorite part about your job?
Brouwers: My patients are, and always will be, my favorite part about my job. Being a telehealth provider, there are inherent barriers that are present as it pertains to building rapport with patients. When first beginning telehealth, I ensured that I was an interactive as possible with my patients and would do whatever I could to be more involved (i.e., changing my background to match the activity). I’ve been in ball pits, down slides, and in wagons and I always feel so connected to my patients. They bring me so much joy every single day.
BHB: What do you want the general public to better understand about your job and the industry you serve?
Brouwers: Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy has a complicated history, as trauma-informed care and assent-based practices were not always core values of the field. I would want to reassure the general public that this field has, and will continue to, grow to be in alignment these values. The patient and their family should always be the first priority with interventions that are data-driven, evidence-based, and compassion-centered. It is our responsibility as clinicians to hold ourselves and others accountable to uphold these values.
BHB: What’s something that you wish other people in your organization — particularly leaders who don’t work on the front lines — understood better about your job?
Brouwers: While the work we do with and for our patients is a large component of being a BCBA, providing quality training and supervision for our Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs) is just as important. I would want to ensure that all ABA organizations, not just my own, are aware of how important it is to have effective training for their RBTs with built-in support for BCBAs to ensure the training is meaningful, client-focused, and easy to maintain and generalize company-wide. Collaboration across operational and clinical leadership is also key for this training to be effective.
To view the entire Frontline Honors Class of 2024, visit https://frontlinehonors.com/.
