1. The TCI SAFE Project: Strategies, Challenges, and Implications in Measuring Training and Program Fidelity
Lisa A. McCabe, Ph.D.
Jack C. Holden, Ph.D.
Residential Child Care Project
Family Life Development Center
Cornell University
National Human Services
Training Evaluation Symposium
Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
June, 2011

2. TCI: Study About Fidelity & Effectiveness
30 years of The Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI) System
Early research* suggests its effectiveness, but need to better understand how TCI training and implementation relate to programmatic practices
*(Nunno, Holden, & Leidy, 2003)

3. TCI: Study About Fidelity & Effectiveness
Process/fidelity of TCI training and implementation in residential child care agencies
Organizational culture and climate around issues of restraint use
How organizational climate and TCI implementation relate to programmatic practices (e.g. number of restraints used)

4. TCI: SAFE Case Studies TCI Agencies in the US
Document review (e.g. program handbooks, incident records)
Agency profile survey
Staff interviews
Training observation
Anonymous staff surveys
TCI Implementation
Reducing Seclusion and Restraint Organizational Questionnaire (Colton & Xiong, 2010)
TCI fidelity checklist

5. What is the TCI System? Crisis prevention and intervention model
Prevent crises
De-escalate potential crises
Reduce injury and risk of injury to young people and staff
Reduce use of physical interventions
Teach young people new coping skills
Develop a learning circle with in the organization

6. Skills Building Pyramid
Skills Building for Co-regulation Strategies in TCI
LSI
Crisis Co-regulation
Emotional First Aid
Active Listening
Crisis Communication
Self Awareness
Co-regulation skills and strategies

7. TCI Training of Trainers Program (5 days)
Associate and Professional Certification Levels
TCI Core Training (20-28 hours)
TCI Updates (1-2 days)
Adapting the LSI for Proactive Aggression
Conflict Resolution
Post Crisis Response
TCI Trainer Support
Developing Professional Level TCI Training Skills

8. Effective TCI Implementation Includes
Leadership and program support Clinical participation Supervision and post crisis response Training and competency standards Documentation and incident monitoring and feedback

9. Today’s TCI: SAFE Workshop
When measuring fidelity to a program, should the goal be certification/assessment, program improvement, or both? Is it possible to have one instrument that accomplishes both goals?
Can you conduct an authentic evaluation of a program in the absence of in-depth observations of program implementation?
How are TCI training, implementation and organizational climate related and how do they relate to training goals (e.g. critical incident rates)?