DESCRIPTORS

Education Act (IDEA), service coordination is defined as "the activities carried out by a service coordinator to assist and enable a child eligible under this part and the child's family to receive the rights, procedural safeguards, and services that are authorized to be provided under the State's early intervention program. " This document describes the strengths and weaknesses of four different approaches to service coordination. These include: (1) dedicated service coordination, in which service coordination responsibilities are the primary focus of the role; (2) early interventionist and service coordination, in which a primary service provider also has service coordination responsibilities; (3) interagency service coordination, in which different agencies may provide service coordination; and (4) interim or intake service coordination, in which a service coordinator facilitates all activities during the first 45 days of service or until the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) is implemented. There is no empirical basis for deciding which of these approaches is better. However