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More than a dozen local agencies – including Heritage Christian
– are hosting a symposium designed to help families with children who have
developmental disabilities plan for changes in the Medicaid system, meeting
their child’s goals and future financial needs.Carol Blessing, who has spent
more than a decade on the faculty with Cornell University's Employment and
Disability Institute, will be the featured speaker on Oct. 10. The free event
runs from 8:15 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Pieters Family Life Center, 1025
Commons Way in Henrietta, and is open to parents, educators and human services
professionals.Child watch and respite care are also both available for free as
part of the Partners Toward Independence symposium, which is sponsored by the
Golisano Foundation.To register, visit www.humanservicesed.org/symposium.
Read the following Q&A with Carol Blessing to get a sense of what the symposium will offer.
1. What is person centered
planning? Why is it important to me and my loved one?
Person-centered planning is a
couple of things. First it is a philosophy or a belief that people who are
labeled as disabled have gifts and capacity and potential like anyone else and
that they have important contributions to make to communities and to society.
Person-centered planning is also a kind of technology for making sure
that the person's gifts and capacities, interests and hopes for the future are
heard and understood, and more importantly, are used as the basis for designing
and implementing service plans. In person-centered work, the voice of the
person with disabilities, their families' and their friends should be directing
the way services provide support. That is what makes it important - if you are
not directing the process, someone else will be.
2. Why do I need to be
concerned about my loved one’s community inclusion?
Community is a place of
belonging to something and of relationships with other people who come together
around common interests and purpose. It is where gifts can be offered and
contributed to make a positive difference in that community. We need
everyone's contribution in our communities to be whole.
3. My loved one is interested
in holding a job in the community; where should they start to look and how can
I help them? What resources are available to us?
I firmly believe that the first
place to look for a job is in and around the places that reflect similar values
and interests that your loved one expresses. Places that will bring out
the best qualities in this person and that will encourage growth in a healthy
way.
4. Why are there so many
barriers to employing people with disabilities? What can we do to help change
long held perceptions?
Big question. Stigma, stereotypes and discrimination born of
negative social perception of people with disabilities is at the top of the
list. Fear of difference and of not knowing what to do in the presence of
difference that shows up in the form of what people have come to call
disability.
One important way to help change perceptions about people
with disabilities is to take good care to avoid reinforcing them. None of
us are immune from placing stereotypes on or discriminating against others. Be
aware of how your thoughts end up in action. Are the actions
representative of the kind of experience we want our sons and daughters to
have?
This could mean changing the way we talk about or to people
with disabilities, how we interact with people, and where we invite them to
show up. It may even mean changing our own beliefs about people with
disability.
A great way to help others
challenge the perceptions that they hold about people with disabilities is to
support them in sharing in relationship with someone in a true and caring way.
When we have live stories that include people with disabilities in
positive ways, the fear and the stereotypes tend to fall away and we get to
know the person for who they are.
5. What is self-determination
and how can it help my loved one reach his or her goals?
Self determination is a set of rights and responsibilities.
The National Center for Self Determination (www.centerforself-determination.com)
defines self-determination in five ways:
it is the FREEDOM to decide how to live your life
it is the AUTHORITY to decide how a targeted amount of
resources will be used in the context of this freedom
it is the SUPPORT to organize resources in ways that are
life-enhancing and meaningful to you
it is the RESPONSIBILITY to use public dollars wisely AND to
give back, to make positive contributions to your community
it is the CONFIRMATION that you matter, that you have an
equal voice and that you will be counted in
6. Things are changing quickly
and sometimes it is hard to keep up. What are the top two or three things that
I need to be most concerned about?
What to be concerned about is a kind of moving target on any
given day. I would say what you want to be diligent about is:
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Having the information that you need to make
informed choices
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Having a solid and active network of positive
support
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Having clear vision of a respected and dignified
life for your loved one and refusing to settle for anything less
