Person Centered Support

Person centered support is the “action step” of person centered planning, and our role on the team is to provide this support. As DSPs it is important for us to remember that the individuals we serve are in the driver’s seat of their own lives, that they get to decide what constitutes a good life and how they want to live it; and that this right is not just a nice idea - it’s protected by federal regulations.

It means that we support both the needs which are important TO the individual…

Relationships - choosing the people they want in their life, choosing the people they DON’T want in their life;
Status and control - a place in the community that is valued and where they have a voice;
Rituals and routines - having their own cultural practices respected, such as holiday celebrations, food, and traditions, as well as having their own personal way of doing things, like having a preferred order of hygiene tasks in their evening routine, or having coffee on the balcony for 15 minutes before starting the day;
Rhythm or pace of life - choosing how much activity or social interaction they want, how long their day will be, and when it will begin;
Things to do and places to go - having something to look forward to (communication is especially important here); and
Things to have - choosing what items they own, what color, what brand…

…while also supporting the needs that are important FOR the individual:

To be valued - making sure social rules and laws affecting the individual are upheld;
To be a contributing member of society in terms of both functional skills and the rights, knowledge, and obligations of citizenship;
To have their health issues and medical conditions managed appropriately and treated by professionals;
To prevent illness when possible and to promote wellness through good habits; and
To exercise appropriate safety precautions (while still allowing for the dignity of risk).

You may be wondering how does this work if our clients are nonspeaking?

For example, how will you know what people your client chooses or does not choose to have a relationship with in their life? How will you know if the individual is refusing to get out of bed and get dressed because they are making a lifestyle choice (don’t want to start the day so early), or if they don’t feel well (and have an unmet health need) if there’s no way to communicate with them?

Good questions!

On the one hand, we all communicate in a number of different ways, not just verbally, and your nonspeaking client is no exception. Research indicates that between 50% and 90% of all communication between people is nonverbal. Our job as DSPs is to be an excellent listener who is fluent in every mode of communication the client uses.

Also, the guardian and other family members know your client best, and are usually very good at figuring out what the individual chooses; and they will have a lot of experience at striking a healthy balance between the things that are important TO your client and the things that are important FOR your client. They are the individual’s most invested advocate, and your best resource.

However.

Even if you are exceptional at interpreting nonverbal communication, and even if the family is just amazing in their ability to determine what the individual prefers in general, the truth is that we all like to try new things, and we all change our mind. Your client may usually be satisfied with chicken strips, french fries, and a root beer when they go out to lunch with their day program peers. But maybe on this particular Thursday, the individual may want a lemonade, or maybe they heard “onion rings” on a television ad last night, and now have a craving for those instead.

How frustrating would it be to have your lunch choices forever dictated by what you liked once six years ago, and to be unable to tell your support person that you want something different this time?

We’ve got an app for that, as the saying goes.