March 24, 2017

by: OakLeaf Services Contributor

Person Centered Planning for OakLeaf Day Services

This month’s expert article was written by Stephen R. Molchan, LSW, OakLeaf Day Services Manager.

There are many buzz words in the field of intellectual disabilities used by professionals, policy makers and care providers. One that keeps reappearing in popularity every couple of years is “Person Centered Planning” or PCP. I first heard about PCP over 20 years ago while working in a disability residential setting. The basic principal of PCP is to place the individual being served at the center of their plan, and then all of the people and interests in that person’s life are represented by circles radiating out from the individual.

To me, person centered planning has always been important, and I am glad PCP is a main focus for the individuals OakLeaf serves. To develop a strong PCP plan you must first have a good assessment of the individual’s wants, needs, hopes and dreams. It should not be about all the circles but what each line of the circles represent to the individual.

At OakLeaf Day Services, we serve adults with the most significant disabilities and challenges to independence. As a part of person centered planning, we have developed a simple, easy to read and understand assessment that encompasses all aspects of an individual’s life. It takes into consideration WHO is a part of the life of the individual being served and why they are important to them; as well as WHAT is important the individual while they are at OakLeaf. Through exploration, we discover what a person might want to learn more about: employment, volunteer opportunities or other interests in the community.

Sometimes when writing a PCP plan, communication is a big focus as some individuals have different ways in which they communicate and express themselves. It can be as simple as knowing if an individual exhibits a certain expression, it means something special and the team should respond by doing what is written in the plan. At OakLeaf, we are always focusing on what is needed to keep an individual safe, what does an individual need to get around, how do they get nutrition and what help do they need with self-care?

The main focus of this type of evaluation is taking into consideration all aspects of an individual’s life, making sure their plan includes their input, focuses on what they are interested in while being sure that an individual is safe, healthy, happy and moving toward greater individual independence while they are at OakLeaf Day Services.

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