About Assessment of Adult Core Competences (ACCEA)
The Assessment of Adult Core Curriculum for Clients with Extreme Aggression (ACCEA) is designed to provide clinicians with a set of priorities for increasing autonomy for adults with ID. The curriculum is geared towards those individuals that display serious aggressive behavior on a regular basis. Clinicians can implement this assessment with all clients who engage in severe problem behavior while working to foster increased independence across a variety of life domains.
There is a workbook that is a clinician’s manual that contains the protocols and worksheets that are described in the companion manual (Assessment of Adult Core Competencies: Teaching Skills to Adults with Autism and Severe Behavioral Challenges - ACCEA) that overviews the curriculum. The workbook is divided into sections that address key components of the ACCEA and allows the clinician to detail assessment and intervention for their participants on the worksheets that are included. An accompanying workbook is offered with the original curriculum book and is divided into sections that address staff training issues, assessment of problem behavior, and a comprehensive set of intervention strategies that can be employed based upon the needs that are identified in the assessment portion of the manual. The initial focus on staff assessment and training is crucial to settings that employ direct service professionals (DSPs) to work with those with high-risk behavioral needs. The ability to maintain a firm programmatic foundation is based upon the stability of the DSP workforce. Training is a key issue with these staff as they are primarily responsible for implementing the programs that the behavioral staff put in place. For the ACCEA to be implemented with fidelity, we recommend the clinicians using the assessments and recommending interventions have a background in behavior analysis, working with adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), an understanding of the multiple factors that influence behavior including biology, context, medications, and trauma history. While others may assist in the collection of data for the purposes of assessment and monitoring of the intervention effectiveness, individuals with a background in supervision, report writing, and communication with stakeholders should be responsible for the assessment and supervision of staff and clients. This initial section will provide the practitioner with effective tools to assess and intervene with their staff that may be experiencing issues related to their own traumatic learning history. The next section of the workbook is comprised of the ACCEA Assessment protocol.