In pediatric and adult therapy settings, safety is foundational to staff confidence, clinical effectiveness, and long-term retention. At Cutting Edge Pediatric & Adult Therapy in Texas, safety is not delegated or outsourced. It is modeled from the top down.

Founder and owner Kate Lundgren brings a rare combination of perspectives to her organization. She is an occupational therapist with over three decades of experience, a parent of two adults with autism, and one of Cutting Edge’s internal Safety-Care trainers. That combination has shaped a culture where staff feel protected, empowered, and supported in some of the most challenging clinical situations.

A Leader Who Understands the Reality of the Work

Kate’s leadership philosophy starts with firsthand understanding. She continues to treat clients herself and has spent years navigating challenging behavior without formal crisis prevention training. “I still treat two clients on the spectrum, and I spent years treating clients on the spectrum, not being Safety-Care trained. And I look back and I think, “Wow, had I known now back then, I could have changed a lot of situations and circumstances.”

Because she has lived the work, Kate believes leaders must understand exactly what staff face day to day. “I think it’s important for anybody that’s working in this type of field to be able to understand exactly the challenges your staff is going through.” This perspective drives her decision not only to support Safety-Care training, but to actively participate in it.

Addressing a Critical Training Gap in Therapy Disciplines

Before implementing Safety-Care, Cutting Edge faced a common but often overlooked challenge. Many therapy professionals receive minimal formal training in behavior escalation and crisis prevention. Without a shared framework, staff may struggle to identify early signals of escalation or feel unprepared when situations intensify.

“If we don’t give people a way to recognize how, when somebody is escalating or when what behavioral signals or triggers are…it’s going to escalate rapidly and then there’s going to be injury and then you get way more aggressive types of behaviors and that’s what scares people.”
Kate’s goal was never to prepare staff for constant physical intervention, but to help them prevent escalation in the first place. “Our whole goal was to figure out a way that we don’t have to have those things happen; that we’re dissolving 99% of that prior to getting to that point.”

Why Leadership-Led Safety Training Matters

When Kate became a Safety-Care trainer herself, it sent a clear message to staff: safety is not optional, and leadership is accountable.

Today, Cutting Edge has five internal Safety-Care trainers, including Kate and other leaders within the organization. As an owner, Kate sees direct involvement as essential to staff buy-in. “The therapists I have here, they’re young. There are a lot of them just out of school.
So it’s important for us to be able to keep them safe and give them the information that I didn’t have [before Safety-Care].”

That involvement builds trust. Staff see that expectations are not theoretical. Leadership is willing to do the work alongside them.

Building Confidence Through Prevention

As staff gain experience and training, fear is replaced by confidence.

“I will tell you over time those that have learned Safety-Care and have engaged with many clients, they don’t have that fear level. They can take on much more challenging behavior than the people that are just brand new.”

This confidence allows Cutting Edge to staff more effectively and equitably. “I don’t want to have to run around and say, ‘OK, I have to give all these clients to therapist A because they’re able to work with that type of client. I need to be able to disseminate the clients to whoever is available on the schedule.” In that way, Safety-Care training becomes not just a safety measure, but a workforce development tool.

Measurable Impact on Safety and Retention

Since implementing Safety-Care, Cutting Edge has seen tangible outcomes. “I’ve seen significant results in the fact that I see a whole lot less incident reports,” says Kate. More importantly, safety has become a cornerstone of staff retention.

“Feeling safe and feeling comfortable and feeling successful and feeling empowered is absolutely a key to retention.” In a field facing staffing shortages constant turnover, this investment matters. “If I’m afraid of who I work with, if I’m not supported, if systems are not put in place, I’m not going to stay there.”

Kate also frames Safety-Care as a benefit, not a burden. “Even in my marketing material, I have a summary sheet of what we offer you as a company, and Safety-Care is listed as a benefit.”

A Culture of Shared Responsibility and Support

At Cutting Edge, safety is embedded into the culture. Staff support each other in real time, across disciplines. “If somebody’s says ‘I need help in the gym’, there’s going to be four people that are at that door.” This teamwork further reinforces retention.

“That’s huge on retainment, huge because people have support coming in.” Kate’s pride in the program is clear. “I’m so thankful that we can equip our clinicians to be safe. I think that is a monumental thing. And you deserve to feel safe.”

Looking Ahead

For Kate, Safety-Care is not a one-time initiative. It is a scalable, sustainable part of Cutting Edge’s growth strategy.

“If you want people safe, if you want those outcomes, I couldn’t guarantee those outcomes any other way.” Her leadership demonstrates that when owners and executives actively invest in safety, confidence follows. And when staff feel confident and supported, they stay.

About Cutting Edge Pediatric & Adult Therapy

Cutting Edge Pediatric & Adult Therapy (CEPT) is an Occupational, Physical, Speech, and ABA therapy clinic committed to providing the support, opportunities, and therapy services necessary to promote every individual’s independence and overall development from infancy through adulthood. For more than two decades, CEPT professionals have led the way in therapy services, specializing in the evaluation and treatment of sensory processing and speech and language issues, fine and gross motor skill development, ADD and ADHD, and autism spectrum and Pervasive Developmental Disorders.

About Kate Lundgren

Kate Lundgren is the founder and co-owner of Cutting Edge Pediatric & Adult Therapy and a licensed occupational therapist with more than 36 years of experience. She founded Cutting Edge in 2013 with her husband, Joe, to provide integrated, collaborative care for individuals with special needs, drawing on both her clinical background and her personal experience as a parent of two adults with autism.

Kate remains actively involved in clinical work and staff training, with a strong focus on safety, prevention, and team-based care. Her leadership emphasizes creating supportive environments where clinicians feel confident and families feel understood, ensuring high-quality, compassionate services for every individual served.