Improving Practitioner Knowledge and Confidence in Early Intervention Coaching for Sensory-Based Concerns: A Pilot...

Testing the effectiveness of a professional development program to support practitioners' ability to provide caregiver coaching for children younger than age 3 with sensory-based challenges is a professional responsibility.

To evaluate the impact of the Sensory Approaches to Infant/Toddler Learning (SAIL) program on practitioners' knowledge of and confidence in caregiver coaching and its acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility.

Prospective cohort pilot study with data collected at three time points.

Large midwestern pediatric hospital with established evidence-based practice, research, and professional development infrastructure.

Occupational therapy practitioners with one or more children younger than age 3 on their caseload were eligible and invited via email.

SAIL included five asynchronous webinars (sensory integration [SI] theory and intervention), 12 biweekly mentorship sessions over 6 mo, and 3 mo access to the Sensory Processing Measure-2 Sensory Professional Reasoning Kit to Promote Infant/Toddler Participation (SPM-2 SPARK).

Practitioner knowledge of and confidence in SI and SI-based caregiver coaching were measured with an investigator-developed survey. Ratings of acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of SAIL components were completed using validated measures.

Participants significantly improved in all knowledge and confidence domains from pretest to posttest and from pretest to follow-up; no significant change occurred from posttest to follow-up. Participants rated the webinar series and SPM-2 SPARK as highly acceptable, appropriate, and feasible.

SAIL is a feasible and well-received approach to enhance capacity for SI-based caregiver coaching. Further research is needed with larger, diverse samples to confirm the results and assess long-term use. Plain-Language Summary: Sensory integration and processing challenges can disrupt infants' and toddlers' participation, yet the literature documents that occupational therapy practitioners feel underprepared to coach caregivers. Despite consensus on the need for postprofessional education and mentorship, evidence of effective approaches is limited. Some young children process and respond to sensory information differently. This includes what they see, feel, hear, taste, and smell, as well as their sense of movement and balance, their sense of body position, and how they use these senses together. Differences in processing and combining these senses can make daily activities such as eating, sleeping, or playing harder. Early intervention, which provides services for children from birth to age 3, often includes occupational therapy practitioners who work with caregivers to help children join in everyday routines. Yet there are reports that many practitioners do not feel confident coaching caregivers about sensory needs. This project tested the Sensory Approaches to Infant/Toddler Learning (SAIL) program, which included online training, mentoring, and practical resources. After the program, practitioners reported more knowledge and confidence in working with families. These results are a first step toward showing that SAIL is effective, but more research is needed.