Programs and Openings:
See Attached Adult Day Services Vacancy Announcements
This meeting served as the committee’s annual Student Information Exchange and in addition to the usual attendees, there were several students and families represented. There were 10 Adult Day Service agencies present as well as representatives from the District 75 Schools and 2 private schools.
Student Packet Exchange:
Was a huge success and we began the meeting by discussing what Adult Day Services are and the general requirements for these services. The description of these services as well as a listing of all Manhattan Adult Day Programs are included in the Manhattan Adult Day Services Directory which can be found and downloaded from the Manhattan DD Council Website – www.manhattanddcouncil.org.
Adult Day Services Provide a continuum of supports and services. The different types of supports and services under Adult Day Services are as follows:
Supportive Employment: Assisting an individual to obtain and maintain a job.
This can service can be intensive at first and it may fade out. However, ongoing support can continue if needed but this support is expected to decrease over time as the individual becomes more independent.
Enhanced Supportive Employment:
A version of Supportive Employment with more intensive training during the individuals stages of looking for and obtaining a job.
Pre-Vocational or Work Readiness:
Supports and trainings to give assistance for the individual to be ready for employment. These two services are really the same but are called two different names because they are are funded by different government funding sources
Day Habilitation Services:
This service can be site based, or it can also be provided in the community – Day Habilitation Without Walls.
Day Habilitation provides training and support to assist an individual to be more independent in the community by working on Adaptive Daily Living Skills, Communication Skills, and their Functional Academic Skills.
All of the supports and services offered to individuals through OPWDD need to meet the general requirement of OPWDD eligibility. In order to meet this eligibility the individual must meet the following 3 criteria:
1. Have a diagnosis of a developmental disability which can include – Intellectual Disability; Autism; Cerebral Palsy; Epilepsy; or Neurological Impairment.
2. The diagnosis must have occurred prior to age 22
3. A substantial deficit in the majority of life skill areas including: Social; Communication; Mobility; Daily Living Skills
In order to determine this eligibility, the following evaluations are generally needed- Psychological Evaluation using an approved IQ Test and an Adaptive Behavior Scale.
PsychoSocial Evaluation which documents developmental history.
**Please Note: There are other city contracts that may have different requirements
Who pays for all of the above programs?
Medicaid is required to pay for these programs.An individual can either apply for Medicaid or can also apply for SSI Benefits and if eligible Medicaid enrollment is automatic. A question was raised pertaining to Managed Care through Medicaid. This is acceptable for all of the above mentioned Adult Day Services, however it may affect Clinical supports.
A question was also raised about Guardianship:
At the age of 18 an individual is deemed capable of becoming an adult unless deemed by a court to be incapable. Thus, those individuals who are unable to make their own decisions may need to have a guardian and there is a process by which this is accomplished. The Manhattan Family Support Directory includes a listing of agencies that can assist in this area. The Family Support Directory can also be located at the Manhattan DD Council’s website: www.manhattanddcouncil.org This directory also includes a listing of all OPWDD agency’s and the services they provide.
The remainder of the meeting was dedicated to allowing the school representatives and students and family members to talk with the various agency representatives and provide them with student referral packages.