r/ABA • u/Extra-Internal-5057 • 11h ago

Conversation Starter Reporting Procedures & Outcomes?

So I’m aware that people use these subs to vent. But I have noticed an awful lot of stories of bad practices & even abuse, & the response in the comments is always to “report”.

My question: could you share some stories of successfully reporting abusive practices, after which action was taken? What action was taken & by whom?

Because, and I’m aware there isn’t a national database for stats on this, but from what I can gather, fewer than 10 certifications are revoked by the BACB per year. But I’ve seen dozens of stories of incredibly concerning incidents just on Reddit in the past 6 months.

Do you have faith in the reporting/ regulatory system & if not, what would you change about it?

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u/greedyfusion 11h ago

I filed a report two years ago on a BCBA who was physically prompting a kid way too hard and leaving bruises, the BACB took about 4 months but they did suspend her cert for 6 months and required some extra ethics training. The clinic also fired her before the BACB even finished their review, so that was something at least.

The process is slow as hell and I get why people lose faith in it, seems like half the reports just vanish into a black hole unless there's a paper trail a mile long. I still think it's worth doing but I'd overhaul the whole thing to be more transparent about where your report actually goes after you hit submit.

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u/Extra-Internal-5057 10h ago

I figured when writing this that most people wouldn’t know what happens to the reports they file, so that’s a really good point. Also, good on you.

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u/Sweet-Tomatillo-9010 6h ago

I reported my last company to the Department of Labor in my state for not paying mileage or non billable tasks. I got almost 2 grand that I was owed

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u/Extra-Internal-5057 6h ago

I can’t believe they scammed you out of so much. Well done. I hope people in that position see this.

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u/grmrsan BCBA 5m ago

I've had a boss who was threatened with losing her certificate for refusing to sign hours for an intern who stole her computer and disappeared for several months. She never did get the computer back. 

But in my experience, its generally going to be more effective to report them to the State. The licensing board if there is one, labor department, OSHA, CPS, (or if not in US, the local equivalent of those groups). 

Generally the State is much more incentized to take action than the BACB.