The 5-Minute SOAP Note Guide
The method I use to keep notes from eating my evenings — including what to do when your EMR won't let you save a template.
- Occupation checklist method
- Combined S + O + A structure
- Works with or without EMR templates
I'm an early intervention pediatric OT. I opened my own practice three years ago and got vendored with my local regional center six months later — mostly by trial and error, because nobody had written any of it down. These are the guides I wish I'd had, so the next therapist doesn't have to piece it together the hard way.
The documentation shortcuts that made self-employment sustainable for me — less time on notes, more time with kids. Take whichever one you need; each includes the other two when you download it.
The method I use to keep notes from eating my evenings — including what to do when your EMR won't let you save a template.
The short version — the decisions to make first, in order, before you file anything.
12 ready-to-use early intervention goals, plus the three-part formula behind every one of them.
For the work itself — what to do in the session, what to send home with the family, and how to write it up. Nothing in this group is state-specific.
The clinical side of the work in one place: what to do in the session, what to send home with the family, and how to write it up.
Nothing in this set is specific to California. It works wherever you practice.
What I actually do in a session, written out — activities with a way to make each one easier or harder, and the language I use to explain the why to parents.
A fillable template for sending families home with something useful — the goals, the skills behind them, and activities written in plain language.
All 35 goals, graded into progressions within each area, plus the occupations that come up most often in early intervention sorted by age band.
Everything I learned opening a practice and getting vendored, in one place instead of scattered across forms, phone calls, and dead-end emails. Written for the moments that stall most pediatric OTs: setting the business up, getting funded, and then actually getting paid.
All three practice guides, in the order you'll need them: set the business up, get vendored, then run the caseload without guessing at the billing.
The two vendorization guides are written for California regional centers. The practice guide applies in any state.
The two setup guides together — form the business, then get through vendorization. Skip this if you want the billing guide too.
The vendorization guide is written for California regional centers. The practice guide applies in any state.
For therapists already in practice who just need the regional center piece — getting vendored, then running the caseload once the referrals start.
Both guides are written for California regional centers. Skip this if you also need help forming the business.
Sole proprietorship through professional corporation, written for pediatric therapists in any state — with California's rules flagged where they differ.
The whole vendorization process in one document — what the DDS Provider Directory actually asks for, in what order, and what to have ready before you start.
What nobody explains after you're approved: the referral-to-payment flow mapped out, from the coordinator's first email to money in your account.
Your files arrive by email the moment you check out. No waiting on a person.
Written and used in my own early intervention practice — not adapted from a textbook or a course I took.
These materials are educational tools. They are not legal, tax, or clinical advice, and they are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department of Developmental Services or any regional center. Vendorization requirements vary by regional center and change over time — confirm current requirements directly with yours. Consult a licensed attorney or accountant before choosing a business structure. Because these are instant-download digital files, all sales are final.