Behavioral Services

This page provides information on topics related to the delivery of behavioral services through the Developmental Disability waivers in the Commonwealth of Virginia.  Information on how to locate a provider for this service, along with professional resources and training videos that behaviorists may find useful in their own practice are also offered. Additionally, content and resources related to quality reviews of behavioral programming is provided.         


Therapeutic consultation is a service available through the FIS and CL waivers encompassing an array of therapy modalities (i.e. speech/language, occupational therapy, behavioral consultation) that may assist in helping implement a person’s individual support plan.  In addition to the waiver regulations, the provider manual may be a useful resource for readers (select Developmental Disabilities Waivers).

The DBHDS/DMAS Practice Guidelines for Behavior Support Plans offers basic guidelines on the minimum elements that constitute an adequately designed behavior support plan for individuals receiving therapeutic consultation behavioral services under the Family and Individual Supports (FIS) and Community Living (CL) Developmental Disability Medicaid waivers in Virginia.  Additional information is also provided in the Practice Guidelines on the use of a least restrictive treatment philosophy, positive behavior supports, utilizing person-centered thinking and planning, and incorporating a trauma-informed approach in behavioral services.  See the button below on “Quality reviews in therapeutic behavioral consultation” for more information.  

There are two primary provider types that deliver therapeutic consultation behavioral services in Virginia: Positive Behavior Support Facilitators (PBSF) and Board Certified Behavior Analysts®/Licensed Behavior Analysts (BCBA®/LBA). 

DBHDS is providing the following SEARCH ENGINE to locate behaviorists that deliver this service. 

If you are behaviorist and would like to have your organization’s contact information listed (or updated) on the search engine linked above, please complete this form.     

The DBHDS/DMAS Practice Guidelines for Behavior Support Plans outline the required content areas and associated minimum elements for behavioral programming through the therapeutic consultation waiver service.  Additional information is included on positive behavior supports, person centered behavior planning, and trauma informed care in behavior planning.  

DBHDS has created the Behavior Support Plan Adherence Review Instrument (BSPARI) to determine adherence to the Practice Guidelines.  The BSPARI Scoring Instructions and Feedback Guide outlines the scoring logic and provides information on the quality review process.  An optional behavior support plan template is also available here.   

In 2024, the creators of the BSPARI, in collaboration with Dr. Neil Deochand at University of Cincinnati, published work on quality assurance in behavioral services, which includes an overview of existing quality assurance instruments and offers considerations for readers interested in policy to practice alignment.  See a read-only version of the the article here: “The Development of a Behavior Plan Quality Assurance Instrument in a Publicly Funded System of Care“.    

Archives for Behavior Analysis in Practice

Archives for Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis

Association for Behavior Analysis International

Association for Contextual Behavioral Science

Association for Positive Behavior Support

Association for Professional Behavior Analysts

Association for Science in Autism Treatment

Behavior Analyst Certification Board ®

B.F. Skinner Foundation

Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies

Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

Council of Autism Service Providers

Kennedy Krieger Institute

International Society for Performance Improvement

National Autism Center’s National Standards Project

PartnerShip Behavior Analytic Research Citations

PubMed Central (free full-text archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM))

Society for the Quantitative Analyses of Behavior

Standard Celeration Society

Western Michigan University Autism Center of Excellence Training Videos

Virginia Association for Behavior Analysis

Virginia Positive Behavior Support Project 

DBHDS behavior analysts are providing features on various aspects of behavior analysis that may be of interest via the ABA Snippets section of the Office of Integrated Health’s monthly newsletter. Snippets are typically pertinent to behavioral consultation, but at times may branch out into the larger corpus of human behavior. Please explore the entirety of the newsletter and OIH website for safety alerts, educational resources, health support network information, and much more. 

In November 2023, DBHDS provided an informational training on general trend results of FBAs and BSPs reviewed via the Behavior Support Plan Adherence Review Instrument (BSPARI).  This training provides information on the purpose and nature of the BSPARI and related feedback sessions, trend results of reviews, and on-target examples and resources.  A similar training was provided in August 2022 and that training is also available below.   

Quality Reviews in Therapeutic Behavioral Consultation, November 2023

BSPARI Trends, August 2022

In 2021, DBHDS partnered with both West Virginia University and the University of Cincinnati to present trainings on functional behavior assessment, behavior support planning, behavioral skills training, and graphical displays and visual analysis.  Training videos are available on the DBHDS YouTube page via the links below:

Introduction to Functional Behavior Assessment

Advanced Functional Behavior Assessment

Behavioral Skills Training

Advanced Behavior Support Planning

Graphical Displays and Analysis: Plotting without Deception Part 1

Graphical Displays and Analysis: Plotting without Deception Part 2

In October 2022, a virtual training on “Navigating Therapeutic Behavioral Consultation” was provided.  The training video offers information on provider enrollment, basics and FAQ on billing, quality assurance initiatives, required documentation and authorization types, and more.  


You can contact leadership for behavioral services at DBHDS here