(REC) Compassionate Caregiver Support: Practical Tools for Practitioners

Compassionate care is more than just a buzzword (Melton, O’Connell-Sussman, Lord, & Weiss, 2023). Infusing caregiver support sessions with compassionate tools to increase collaboration can improve parental adherence (Taylor, LeBlanc, & Nosik, 2019). Looking at compassion research from behavior analysis and other fields, we can find simple, practical ways to make compassion the compass that
guides all caregiver support sessions (Penney, Bateman, Veverka, Luna, & Schwartz, 2023). Adding in simple practices rooted in compassion before, during, and after parent training doesn’t have to be time consuming or overwhelming (Trzeciak, 2019).

In this workshop, participants will learn how to use compassion focused tools to foster improved collaboration between caregivers and behavior analysts specifically by using empathy mapping as a tool for self-reflection and preparation.

Learning Objectives:

• The participant will define and compare empathy vs compassion.
• The participant will define compassionate caregiver support.
• The participant will learn how to create an empathy map.
• The participant will complete a sample empathy map.
• The participant will identify a situation to use an empathy map in their current practice.

PRESENTER(S): Leanne Page

Leanne Page is a BCBA, ACE provider, parent coach, mom of two, founder of Parenting with ABA, and best-selling author of Parenting with Science: Behavior analysis saves mom’s sanity and Enjoy Parenting: The busy mom’s behavior toolbox.

At ParentingwithABA.org, Leanne supports families through free content, online courses and workshops, and parent coaching. Leanne supports professionals through continuing education all about providing compassionate care to families, resources for parent training, and a mastermind group for online ABA business owners.