Pa. Code 5240.73

Training requirements for staff who provide individual services

This section establishes initial and annual training requirements for staff at Intensive Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) agencies who provide individual services, including behavior consultation, mobile therapy, and Behavioral Health Technician (BHT) services. Staff new to BHT services must complete at least 30 hours of pre-service training and an additional 24 hours within the first six months covering topics such as child development, functional behavioral assessment, family engagement, and restrictive procedures. Ongoing annual training of 16–20 hours is required depending on role, and licensed or certified staff may count continuing education hours toward these requirements.

55 Pa. Code § 5240.73 - Training requirements for staff who provide individual services 

 State Regulations 

 Compare

(a)
 An IBHS agency
 that provides individual services shall ensure that staff complete initial and
 annual training requirements.

(b)
 An
 individual who provides behavior consultation services or mobile therapy
 services shall complete at least 16 hours of Department-approved training
 annually that is related to the individual's specific job functions and is in
 accordance with the individual training plan required under §
 
5240.13
 (relating to staff
 training plan).

(c)
 If the
 individual has not previously provided BHT services, the individual shall
 complete at least 30 hours of Department-approved training prior to providing
 services independently that includes the following topics: 
 
(1)
 Sections 6301-6386 of 23 Pa.C.S.
 (relating to Child Protective Services Law) and mandated reporting
 requirements.

(2)
 Crisis
 intervention skills, including risk management, de-escalation techniques and
 safety planning.

(3)
 Behavior
 management skills and coaching.

(4)

 Child and adolescent development.

(5)
 Overview of serious emotional disturbance
 and other behavioral and psychosocial needs of the children, youth and young
 adults with whom the individual works.

(6)
 Professional ethics, conduct and
 confidentiality.

(7)
 First aid,
 universal precautions and safety.

(8)
 Psychotropic medications, including
 common side effects.

(d)

 If an individual has not previously provided BHT services, the individual shall
 complete at least 24 hours of Department-approved training within the first 6
 months of providing BHT services that includes the following topics: 
 
(1)
 Documentation skills.

(2)
 Systems of care principles.

(3)
 Overview of functional behavioral
 assessment.

(4)
 Ethnic, cultural
 and linguistic considerations of the community served.

(5)
 Strategies and interventions to engage
 children, youth or young adults and parents, legal guardians or caregivers in
 services, including family systems theory.

(6)
 Skills and techniques for working with
 families.

(7)
 Overview of community
 resources and child and youth-serving systems and processes.

(8)
 Cross-systems collaboration.

(9)
 Communication and conflict resolution
 skills.

(10)
 Basic individual
 education plan and special education information.

(11)
 Safe use of restrictive procedures in
 accordance with §
 
5240.6
 (relating to restrictive
 procedures).

(e)
 An
 individual who provides BHT services shall complete at least 20 hours of
 Department-approved training annually that is related to the individual's
 specific job functions and is in accordance with the individual training plan
 required under §
 
5240.13
.

(f)
 An individual who provides BHT services
 may substitute completed college coursework for required training topics in
 subsection (c) or (d) by providing an official transcript and other
 documentation to the IBHS agency that reflects that the coursework addressed a
 required training topic.

(g)
 An
 individual who is certified may count hours of training required to maintain
 certification towards the training requirement in subsections
 (b)-(e).

(h)
 An individual who is
 licensed in this Commonwealth may count hours of training required to maintain
 licensure towards the training requirements in subsections
 (b)-(e).

Notes

55

 Pa. Code §
 
5240.73

This section cited in 55 Pa. Code §
 
5240.83
 (relating to training
 requirements for staff who provide ABA services); and 55 Pa. Code §
 
5240.93
 (relating to training
 requirements for staff who provide group
 services).

State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available.
 Below is a 
comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release.

 More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.

 No prior version found.

 State Regulations Toolbox