Supporting and guiding the person with autism

Main Office: 331 Gambrills Rd. Suite 4A Gambrills, MD 21054
PHONE: 410-923-1100 FAX: 410-923-1101
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    Private Clients

    A Private Client is considered to be any family whose child is not receiving services from the Maryland Medical Assistance Autism Waiver program. Private clients may be listed on the Autism Waiver Registry, but Private Clients do not have to be on the waiting list to receive services from The Whole Self Center (WSC). We serve clients aged 5 to 25 years old, and we will consider including individuals with special needs who have diagnoses other than autism.

Our Philosophy and Mission

    The Whole Self Center’s philosophy suggests that every human being is more than a body with a brain. When caring for a child – a whole person - we are experiencing the creative spirit present in that child & in ourselves.

    • As we remain interested in exploring creative possibilities for the individual in the moment, we are more open to experiencing something new, such as developing a valuable skill we never knew or thought was possible.
    • In this way, we are less likely to stay stuck in repeating our old, inhibiting habits & behaviors.
    • By living this understanding with individuals with autism, we continue to become better able to respect & support children for who they already are, deserving of love & attention simply for being.

 



Private Clients

WSC has been providing Autism Waiver services since September 2002 and we have continued to evolve how we operate our agency in ways that best meet our clients’ needs as well as our employees’ needs. Because we have developed an efficient and compassionate program, we have been asked to provide services to families who are not part of the Waiver.  WSC has followed the strict State and Federal Regulations that define how Autism Waiver Agencies are required to provide services.  The successful state audits of our agency, and the progress our clients have made with the custom designed programs we’ve developed, led us to decide to offer the same quality approach to private families.

Family Request for Services Form for Families New to The Whole Self Center

You can scan through our website to read about The Whole Self Center’s Autism Program for more detail, but as an overview we offer:

Person-Centered Assessment (PCA) – During a home interview our professional will discuss what interventions have worked for your child and what approaches may not have been a good fit for your child and your family. We look at 16 different areas of every day situations that allow your child to be independent now and continue to be independent as they get older and must adapt to new home, work and living arrangements.

Treatment Plan – The Treatment Plans are created depending on the types of services that family requests. It provides guidelines and specific directions on how to teach communication, social and behavioral skills. The Treatment Plan is not an IEP. It is fluid documents that is controlled by the parents and can be adjusted and changed any time a parent requests. The Treatment Plan is found on our secure Whole Self Monitoring System so that everyone involved in your child’s care can be kept updated as the treatment plan is revised.

Family Consulting (FC) - The Family Consultant is a Professional Consultant in the area of Autism and other Special Needs that guides your team of family members and caregivers. Our Family Consultants range from Special Ed. Teachers, Speech and Language Pathologists, Board Certified Behavior Analysts, Social Workers and Psychologists. The Family Consultant provides direction, guidance and practical suggestion that supports everyone involved and is instrumental in helping the family determine which goals require priority. We highly recommend that families use Family Consulting to help assure that everyone on the team works towards the same goals in the best interest of your child.

The Intensive Individual Support Services (IISS) consists of a paraprofessional working one-on-one with your child. This trained paraprofessional will work under the guidance of the Family Consultant as well as under the expectations of the philosophy and performance standards of the Whole Self Center. Time with the IISS Technician may consist of working in the home and/or community always with the intension of practicing the functional skills identified in your child’s individualized Treatment Plan. Our main goal is for the IISS Technician to have compassion for your child while at the same time making sure that learning is done in a fun and creative way.

Therapeutic Integration (TI) is a service that provides your child the opportunity to practice social skills with peers. WSC’s TI program is held at the Whole Self FriendShip a facility and program we created to maximize the ability to provide much needed structure required by individuals with autism. At the same time we offer flexibility so your child may choose from a variety of social activities such as Music Therapy, Arts and Crafts, Games, Sensory/Fitness Activities. The Whole Self Friendship Center is located in Gambrills, Maryland in Anne Arundel County. The Center is open after school, evening, weekends, holidays and summer.

Respite Care (RC) is a service intended to support family members and the individual. As a family member, you can feel confident that your child is well cared for while you attend to your own needs either at home or away from home. Your child benefits because Respite does not focus on intense teaching but instead on relaxation and recreation. Respite care can take place in your home and/or community and may also include overnight care.

Family Request for Services Form for Families New to The Whole Self Center

Once you complete a Family Request for Services Form at the above link you will receive an email confirming that you sent a request to us.  Judi Weaver our Office Manager or her assistant from our Administrative Staff will contact you and answer any further questions you have.  You will then have the option to purchase a combination of service hours that meets your family’s needs.  You will be able to purchase any number of service hours.   Understand that you are entitled to receive a refund for any service hours you purchased that remain as a result of your decision to stop services.  For example, you might purchase 10 IISS service hours and have an WSC IISS technician provide your child 3 IISS service hours.  If you decide not to have WSC continue to provide IISS, you will receive an amount equal to 7 IISS service hours OR you can apply the remaining hours to another type of service: Family Consulting, Therapeutic Integration, and/or Respite Care.