Boston University Sargent College · AOTA Approved Provider · Live Online Cohort
Better Together: Practical Tools for Family-Centered Partnership
Better care starts with family partnership.
Research evidence shows that family-centered care, delivered through a genuine therapeutic partnership with family members, is best practice for children and adults alike. This course gives occupational therapy practitioners practical, evidence-based tools for collaborative work with family members, so clients reach the goals that matter to them, efficiently and lastingly.
Register for the February 2027 cohort
Format
Online: live sessions + independent written work
Credit
30 contact hours · 3.0 AOTA CEUs · 30 PDUs
AOTA Approval
PD Activity ID# 17384
Who it's for
Occupational therapy practitioners
Course description
Partnership that multiplies your impact
Better Together builds practical skills for genuine partnership with family members, from everyday conversations to collaborative goal setting and family-centered assessment. Grounded in current evidence and adult learning theory, the course moves from principles to hands-on practice, so what you learn carries directly into your work with clients and their families.
Ten live online sessions (30 academic hours) combining lectures, simulations, and real-world field assignments, including two asynchronous written assignments completed independently.
Learning objectives
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
1
Analyze theoretical models and current evidence supporting family-centered care as an approach to promoting client and family participation in meaningful occupations.
2
Apply family-centered communication strategies, including active listening, information sharing, and literacy- and learning-style-sensitive dialogue, to engage and deepen partnerships with family members.
3
Examine the unique needs, priorities, and lived experience of individual families to inform individualized, family-centered practice responsive to each family's specific context.
4
Facilitate collaborative, occupation-focused goal setting with families using coaching and training-based models.
5
Navigate complex conversations and multidisciplinary meetings involving family members with confidence and clarity.
6
Integrate cultural sensitivity and multicultural considerations into family-centered practice across diverse family systems.
7
Select and apply family-centered evaluation and assessment tools appropriate to a family's occupational priorities and context.
8
Evaluate managerial and organizational processes through a family-centered lens, and develop strategies to champion sustainable family-centered practice at the organizational level.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Ten live online sessions (30 academic hours) combining lectures, simulations, and real-world field assignments, including two asynchronous written assignments completed independently.
MODULE 1
Foundations of Family-Centered Care
Principles, theoretical models, and the most current evidence.
MODULE 2
The Conversation with the Family
Two-way communication skills: listening, sharing information, and adapting to learning styles and literacy.
MODULE 3
Getting to Know the Special Family
Deepening the understanding of parenting a child with additional needs.
MODULE 4
Goals That Truly Matter
Setting meaningful therapy goals using a coaching and guidance model.
MODULE 5
Complex Conversations and Meetings
Practical tools for conversations with family members and multidisciplinary meetings.
MODULE 6
Cultural Sensitivity
Working with families from diverse backgrounds using the multicultural model.
MODULE 7
Family-Centered Assessments
Assessment tools that place the family at the center.
MODULE 8
From Clinic to Organization
Evaluating managerial and organizational processes through a family-centered lens.
Research-based. Field-proven.
A published effectiveness study of this training (Gafni-Lachter & Ben-Sasson, 2022, American Journal of Occupational Therapy) followed 82 practicing providers and found statistically significant, medium-to-large gains in family-centered care implementation and professional self-efficacy after training, gains that held regardless of years of experience or practice setting.
Your instructor
Dr. Liat Gafni Lachter
PhD, OTD, OTR/L
An occupational therapist since 2003, working with children and their families. Lecturer and mentor in the occupational therapy doctoral program at Boston University, and instructor in family-centered care at the University of Haifa. PhD from the University of Haifa, OTD from Boston University.
Recipient of a Fulbright postdoctoral fellowship and the European Commission's Horizon 2020 Seal of Excellence for research advancing family-centered care. Author of the book Better Together and of publications in peer-reviewed journals, including the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.
Logistics and policies
Provider and contact
PD Provider: Boston University, Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences
AOTA PD activity approval ID#17384 ·
bu.edu/sargent/
Completion requirements
Camera on for live sessions · minimum 80% attendance · two asynchronous written assignments, including a reflective assignment on a conversation with a family member · case-based group mentoring · peer mentoring.
A certificate of completion with AOTA CEUs is issued upon meeting all requirements.
Cancellation policy
Full refund, minus a 5% processing fee, if you cancel 14 or more days before the start date. 50% refund if you cancel 7 to 13 days before. No refund within 7 days of the start. You may transfer your registration to a future cohort or to a colleague at any time at no charge. Payment is not collected at registration, so cancelling before you pay costs nothing.
Accessibility
Delivered through accessible technology in compliance with the ADA for distance learning. Live sessions include captioning on request. To request accommodations, contact Dr. Liat Gafni Lachter at
better.together.israel@gmail.com at least two weeks before the course start date.
Join the February 2027 cohort
Registration includes all ten live sessions, both written assignments, case-based and peer mentoring, and your AOTA CEU certificate upon completion.
$595 standard · $525 early registration through January 11, 2027
Register now, pay later: no payment is taken today. We will email you payment details after you register.
Boston University is an AOTA Approved Provider of professional development. PD activity approval ID#17384. This Distance Learning (interactive and independent) activity is offered at 3.0 CEUs, Intermediate level, Service Delivery and Professional Issues categories. The assignment of AOTA CEUs does not imply endorsement of specific course content, products, or clinical procedures by AOTA.
Dr. Liat Gafni Lachter · Better Together · In partnership with Boston University Sargent College ·
Better Together home
