A Guide to Person-Centered Planning
Person-Centered Planning empowers people with disabilities by focusing on the desires and abilities of the individual. Person Centered Planning involves a team of family members, friends, professionals and most importantly, the individual. The individual chooses their team members. This team then identifies the skills and abilities of the individual that can help them achieve their goals of competitive employment, independent living, continuing education, and full inclusion in the community. They also identify areas in which the individual may need assistance and support and decide how the team can meet those needs.
Traditional Planning Methods
In the recent past, people with
disabilities have been viewed as "deficient" and incapable of meaningful
contributions to their community. This model has led to discrimination,
ridicule, and abuse against people with disabilities. Traditional planning
methods focus on the individual's deficits, their perceived lack of skills
or talents. Goals for people with disabilities are set by professionals and
service providers, and are centered on "fixing" the individual. If those
identified deficits are fixed, the individual is re-evaluated and more
deficits are found. This philosophy of focusing on the negative makes it
unlikely that a person with disabilities is ever deemed ready for life in
the community. It has also been the guiding principle behind the
institutionalization of people with disabilities for decades.
The problem with traditional planning methods
Traditional planning methods work from the theory that people with disabilities are not qualified to decide for themselves how they want to spend their lives. This notion, if applied to anyone else, would be rejected immediately as contrary to our values of freedom and liberty.
Just
because someone calls
it a "Person-Centered Plan"
doesn't mean that it really is
How can you tell the difference between a real plan and a false plan?
| A Real Plan | A False Plan | |
|
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What are the qualities of good planning?
A good plan is tailored to the dreams, goals,
and needs of the individual. It results in real actions and outcomes
for that individual. A good Person-Centered Planning team builds and
sustains relationships. The people on the team work together to solve
problems and seek to assist the individual in building a more desirable
future.
Individualizing the
Plan
A plan is individualized if the
planners focus on the individual's interests, gifts, and talents. Team
members should know the individual or wish to know the person so the team
can gain a shared appreciation of the individual over time. A real PCP
team will work to discover the individual's agenda and design a process that
works for the individual.
Questions to ask about the planning process
Are we talking about what's "wrong" with me or the real me?
Are we sitting at a table or spending time together?
Are we gathering and discussing progress in a way that works for me?
Are we working on the changes that I want?
Building the team
Invite the "right people" to plan. Look at family
members and friends, but also people that have contacts in the community
that can help the individual reach their goals. Look for naturally
occuring relationships and resources.
Questions to ask about team members
Are all the planners committed to making the changes I want happen?
Are we adding people who can help with changes?
Are we looking at a broad range of community resources?
Are we using our own connections?
Are people doing what they say they will?
Planning a more
desirable future
As the team begins to mesh,
they should spend time with the individual to discover what is behind their
hopes and dreams and then develop a vision that is grounded in those
preferences of the individual. The team should seek to make the ideal
a reality, and not settle for a compromise because it is easier or quicker
to accomplish.
Questions to ask about future planning
Do the dreams and goals we are working toward come from things about me and not just services that are available?
Are my supporters helping me understand my options?
Are my supporters taking time to help me explore a life that makes sense?
How can I express my vision for the future?
A vision of the future is personal to
the individual, not a
one-size-fits-all plan. It is the heart of the plan and can be
expressed in many forms, through words, art, music, or pictures.
Getting action and
reaching goals
Above all, the team must be doers, not just talkers! They
should develop concrete goals and action steps to achieve those goals.
The team should be developing the ability within the community to support
the individual and promote changes within organizations to provide the
supports needed. Finally, the team should celebrate their
accomplishments together.
Questions to ask about actions and goals
Are my supporters doing their work?
Are they assisting me in doing my work?
Do we have a concrete plan of action that is moving me toward a future that makes sense?
Are things getting done?
Are these the things I wanted to happen?
Solving problems
Team members should explore every option for available resources,
supports, and assistance the individual will need that makes sense to them.
Every team member should also commit to an ongoing process of listening,
learning, reflecting, and taking action.
Questions to ask about problem solving
Do we face up to challenges or put off the difficult questions?
Are we putting together the supports and services that will make my life go better?
Do we look beyond what we know?
"The
significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking
that created them"
- Albert Einstein
Microboards
A microboard is formed when a small group of
people who know and care about a person with a disability join together with
that person to create a non-profit organization. Its purpose is to
plan for and obtain needed supports in that individual's life.
Microboard Workbook
(Adobe Acrobat file)
If you
keep on doing what you've always done,
you'll keep on getting what you've always got
