Accessibility

This is the third in a series of newsletters produced at the Exchange to provide assistance to our CMS Real Systems Change grantees. This newsletter is produced biannually. Topics include: Physicians’ Role in Determining Level of Care, Nurse Practice Policies for Home and Community Living, ADRC Toolbox, Massachusetts Connecting the Dots, Making Medicaid Work in the 21st Century, Assessment Instruments, HCBS Quality Management Roles & Responsibilities, Family Caregiving, and Housing.

The Formative Evaluation of the Real Choice Systems Change Grants evaluates how the Systems Change grantees are progressing towards meeting their goals. The Formative Evaluation identifies problems faced by the grantees and ways that they deal with the problems. This document provides summary information about each of the FY2004 Grantees.

The Compendium contains basic information about each of the Real Choice Systems Change Grantees. The Compendium will help you learn more about how these grants will be used to allow more people of all ages with a disability or long term illness to live and participate in their communities. Real Choice Systems Change Grantees will also find the Compendium useful to identify other Grantees with similar goals and activities. The fourth edition of the Compendium replaces all previous editions.

A Sharing of Ideas on Community Inclusion for People with Disabilities. Thie report caputures discussion from 9 participating towns who were represented by a range of elected and disability services officials. Several participants were individuals with disabilities or family members of people with disabilities. All present shared a desire to bring back their towns back ideas for enhancing local awareness of the barriers faced by people in becoming fully included and integrated into community.

The Pennsylvania ADRC program has developed a number of measurement instruments including three surveys and an assessment instrument. This program is a joint effort between Pennsylvania’s Office of Health Care Reform as well as the Departments of Aging and Public Welfare. The products include a survey for eligible, ineligible and enrolled consumers and a community choice assessment instrument.

The “Housing Search Guide” was developed to assist professionals who have a role in “relocation” of people with disabilities from nursing facilities to community living arrangements with appropriate services and supports. The Guide was developed by staff of the Texas Independent Living Partnership, a program of ARCIL, Inc. funded by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services under the “Real Choice Systems Change” program.

A number of states have developed rental housing locators that allow online searches for affordable housing units. These sites range from bare-bones databases of state-financed developments to elaborate sites with multiple search criteria, extensive information about accessibility for persons with disabilities, current vacancy information, and links to local service agencies. This report reviews several web-based sites based on several factors and compares the findings.

A must have book for everyone and anyone who wants to learn low cost assistive technology (A.T.) solutions that can be constructed in five minutes or less. This book is filled with over 600 color photographs of innovative fabrication techniques for constructing A.T. solutions for home, school, work, and play. A companion 42 Piece A.T. Tools and Materials Kit is also available. Both items can be purchased at www.nhassistivetechnology.org.

Discussion at this meeting was lively and productive, and the opportunity to meet people from other parts of the state and other municipalities proved fruitful. Following the suggestion of participants in the October Forum, the agenda included presentations of what the three Model Communities have done and how it is working, and sharing of successes, ideas and resources among other participating towns.

Discussion at this meeting was lively and productive, and the opportunity to meet people from other parts of the state and other municipalities proved fruitful. The idea of adapting the “lessons learned” in the model communities and hosting regional meetings was introduced; a shared enthusiasm for the idea gave rise to a series of Regional Forums. This forum, held in Groton, CT was the second in the series, held on December 3, 2004.