Every day, UCPSA helps children and adults with all types of disabilities by providing the very best home-based support services in Tucson and Yuma. Services offered include personal care, hygiene, light housekeeping, cooking, and other household chores related to the care of consumers.
UCPSA also offers respite to parents and guardians of individuals with disabilities in order to give them time off from their regular caregiving responsibilities. Behavioral services, behavioral training, and various habilitation services, such as independent living, are also offered.
Through UCPSA’s WorkAbility program, individuals with disabilities are prepared for competitive, integrated, and sustainable work opportunities in Tucson.
ASCEND (Autism Services Cultivating the Exceptional and Nurturing their Development) is a specialty program of UCP of Southern Arizona that offers Early Childhood Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to children under the age of 6 who have been diagnosed with autism or are at high risk of being diagnosed with autism.
In an effort to fulfill our commitment to reaching out to as many families as possible, UCPSA receives funding support from the following sources:
• Attendant Care
Attendant Care is designed to give individuals in need the independence, privacy, and dignity they deserve. The goal of the attendant caregiver is to provide individualized at-home care safely within the limits of their abilities and/or disabilities. Attendant Care provides exceptional, personable, energetic, friendly, compassionate, dependable, and kind attentiveness. The loving services provided may include any or all of the following:
• Respite Care
Respite care is a special name for a short-term break for caregivers. Caring for an individual who is disabled can be an around-the-clock job. Taking a break from time to time is crucial in order to properly take care of those in need. Respite care can take place in your home, allowing family members time outside the home for recreational activities. The emphasis of respite care is recreation, allowing a time of rest and relaxation. Respite care can be provided by the hour day or even for weeks.
• Habilitation
Habilitation refers to the process aimed at helping individuals attain, keep, or improve skills and functioning for daily living. An example of this is that a child with cerebral palsy may require the assistance of a physical therapist to learn how to sit. Or another child may need speech therapy to learn to say their R sounds. Because both of these are skills that the children have yet to accomplish, the aim of the therapy is habilitation. A list of goals for the individual is determined by themselves, a family member, the person's Support Coordinator, and a UCPSA Program Manager. Some examples of these types of goals are learning to brush one's teeth, showering, cleaning one's room, sorting laundry, or preparing a meal.
Another type of Habilitation is known as Individualized Designed Living Arrangements, or IDLA's. This service is provided to adults who live independently. The purpose of this service is to assist and teach individuals the skills to live successfully in their own homes. For example, our Direct Care Workers could teach them how to plan healthy meals, make grocery lists, cook, do laundry, manage money or use public transportation.
• Housekeeping
Housekeeping is provided to individuals or family members who are unable to complete light housekeeping/chores on their own.
UCP of Southern Arizona’s employment services program, WorkAbility, is an individualized and supportive employment program dedicated to teaching and preparing people with disabilities for competitive, integrated, and sustainable work opportunities in southern Arizona. This includes on the job supports and training, pre-employment skills, and consulting and education for employers. In addition, we provide various work-based curriculums geared towards transition-age youth. The end goal is matching the person to an employer with real jobs paying real wages.
Transition to Employment (TTE) program, Individualized Supportive Employment (ISE), and Employment Services Aide (ESA) services, you must:
Pre Employment Transition Services (Pre-Et’s), you must:
Vocational Rehabilitation services, Job Retention and Development (JDR), and Rehabilitation Instructional Services (RIS), you must:
Supported Education (SEDU), you must:
If you are interested in receiving employment services or want to learn more, please email workability@ucpsa.org.
UCP of Southern Arizona’s ASCEND program offers home-based ABA services for children and adolescents with developmental disabilities. ASCEND conducts a thorough assessment and develops a customized teaching plan for the unique needs of each child with a focus on building functional skills and decreasing challenging behaviors. ASCEND evaluates our service regularly and adjusts accordingly to ensure every child is successful.
• Applied Behavior Analysis
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the science of behavior and learning. ABA uses assessment, systematic intervention, evidence-based teaching and data analysis to accelerate learning. Target skills are broken down into small achievable steps and reinforcement contingencies are adjusted to maximize motivation and growth. ABA therapy can improve communication, social skills, executive functioning, emotional regulation, and daily living skills.
• Family-Centered Approach
We see parents as the experts of their children. Our families play an active role in identifying and implementing goals. We provide family training to fit your needs.
• Service Coverage
ABA services may be covered by your health insurance. Eligible members may be approved for up to 40 hours per week of direct ABA therapy depending upon their needs and medical necessity. ASCEND accepts a variety of commercial and public health plans. ASCEND will work with your insurance company to verify benefits and establish authorization for ABA services. Contact ASCEND today to begin the referral process.
For more information please contact:
We have a regional office serving the cities south of Tucson (Sahuarita to Nogales).
UCP of Southern Arizona
1131 S. La Cañada Drive, Suite 105
Green Valley, AZ 85614
Office: 520.347.6950
On Call: 520.955.1706
FAX: 520.347.6917
E-mail: staff@ucpsa.org
We also provide services in Yuma!
UCP of Southern Arizona
333 W. 8th Street
Yuma, AZ 85364
Office: 928.259.7700
On Call: 928.750.5554
FAX: 928.259.7697
E-mail: staff@ucpsa.org