Mobile Therapy Centers of America filling need for family autism services
There's a reason why Mobile Therapy Centers of America has grown from a single location in Libertyville to planned sites in Crystal Lake and St. Charles, and even out-of-state clinics in Tennessee and Iowa.
The expansion is meeting the need for family autism services.
For 15 years, MTC President and CEO Jason Newman has provided a resource for children with speech, occupational and behavioral therapy needs. With co-owners Nicole Fauquier and Raquel Roos adding decades of experience in the field, MTC has become a valuable outlet for families.
Newman, who used to work in the health care industry, founded MTC after watching his own son struggle as a late-speech learner. His son was not diagnosed with autism, but the experience still showed Newman the need for additional diagnostic and treatment options.
“I went through that whole experience as a parent of not knowing what is wrong with your child,” Newman said. “Figuring that out, it was life-changing for him and life-changing for me as a parent. With my history in the medical world, I was able to put two and two together and start a business.”
Fauquier, who is the MTC director of operations and a speech-language pathologist, and Roos, the MTC national director of ABA (applied behavior analysis), joined Newman's team and together with a growing staff they've designed a diverse program that now serves 400 clients in Illinois.
“With the mobile portion in particular, we're affiliated with over 180 schools and child-cares in the (Chicago) area as well as into Wisconsin,” Fauquier said. “A lot of our services have that concierge ability to bring the services to different places.
“We have a very strong connection with some private child-care companies that are heavily based in corporations,” she said. “We also have a very strong relationship with the Archdiocese of Joliet, the Archdiocese of Chicago and the Lutheran school network as well as the Montessori schools.”
The key to MTC's success has been its flexible approach, starting with its free screening and initial consultation. While the staff has the ability to meet with children and families in their home, school, day care or elsewhere through the mobile strategy, the MTC sites offer in-house therapy options.
The Libertyville facility is completing an addition that will provide 27,000 square feet of space and more than 40 treatment rooms for the techniques detailed at the MTC website, mtcus.com.
The site has “mock” rooms to help children adapt to environments they might find difficult, such as a restaurant, doctor's office or classroom. Through various methods, the clinics develop the communication, self-help and social skills necessary to thrive.
In addition to providing therapy for children, counseling is available for families. And whether families want to supplement the support they receive in school or continue to work on skills in the summer when school is out of session, MTC will adjust.
“It's super individualized,” Roos said. “No two kids have the same treatment plan. It's based on family structure and their specific strengths and deficits, and it's tailored just for them.”
So far Newman and his team have been able to keep up with the staffing demands caused by expansion, but he insists future growth will be based on the ability to continue to find qualified personnel. For now the focus remains on Libertyville and getting the other sites in Illinois, Tennessee and Iowa up and running.
“Our growth is really methodical and targeted so that we can support all the need,” Newman said. “We'll go where I know we can service everybody appropriately and professionally to the best of our ability.”