Oregon Institute of Technology recently received a community investment of $150,000 from Cascade Health Alliance (CHA), for expansion of Oregon Tech’s Behavior Improvement Group Applied Behavior Analysis (BIG ABA) clinic.
Focusing primarily on the treatment of children with autism or pervasive developmental disorder diagnosis, the BIG ABA clinic opened in May, the only ABA clinic within 75 miles of Klamath Falls. The clinic provides training and supervision for Oregon Tech bachelor’s and master’s students in the ABA degree programs.
CHA’s investment supports the clinic’s goal of increasing treatment hours by 300 percent over the next five years. The expansion will help build solutions to hurdles preventing patients from receiving treatment, expand community outreach, add in-home family support, and increase overall services in regional communities.
“At CHA we believe that by investing in our community we are also investing in the members we serve,” said Tayo Akins, president and chief executive officer at CHA. “The shortage of Applied Behavior Analysis professionals is very significant in Oregon, let alone Klamath that has a significant demand for this service for the population we serve. This investment will allow CHA to develop and have adequate access to Applied Behavioral Analysis providers and hopefully attract providers that will stay in Klamath once they finish this program.”
The clinic is a priority project in the Rural Communities Development initiative of the $4 million Foundational Campaign for the Future at Oregon Tech. This initiative focuses on partnerships which provide students applied experiences, improving the health and capacity of community partners, and building projects for the campus and community.
“The community investment from Cascade Health Alliance demonstrates their passion and commitment for the Klamath Community,” said Oregon Tech president, Dr. Naganathan. “CHA has been a strong community partner for Oregon Tech in a variety of important initiatives, and this is one more example. We thank CHA for investing in our students’ education and practical experiences as we build the region’s rural health care workforce.”
To learn more about the BIG ABA clinic, visit bigaba.oit.eduor contact the clinic leadership team at abaclinic@oit.edu or 541-885-1675.
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