All States/Territories

Democracy is not a spectator sport. This guide was written to help you use the skills you already have to change government actions that affect your life. As an individual, you may wonder what you can do to change things. As a grassroots group, you may think that the deck is stacked against you. The Power Point slides provide strategies for grass roots advocacy. Materials are especially useful for advocates and consumers.

The HCBS Work Book is a technical assistance guide to assist state agencies with their HCBS quality improvement efforts. It provides step-by-step guidance on how to conduct quality improvement projects within the HCBS waiver program, and illustrates the principles of quality improvement in an easy to use format. The Work Book was developed for CMS by the Muskie School of Public Service at the University of Southern Maine.

The Participant Experience Surveys (PES) is an interview tool developed by MEDSTAT under a contract from CMS. The surveys capture data that can be used to calculate indicators for monitoring quality within the waiver prograns. Two versions of the PES are included, one for frail elderly and adults with physical disabilities and another for adults with MR/DD. A Users' Guide accompanies each PES. Each survey can be conducted in a face-to-face interview in 30 minutes or less.

Teleconference presentation by Susan Flnagan on Workers Compensation \"best practices\" for personal assistants. The topic is Accessing Workers’ Compensation Insurance For Individuals Participating In Self-directed Support Service Programs: A National Review.

In his letter to State Medicaid Directors dated February 17, 2004, Glenn Stanton (Acting Director, DEHPG, CMS) introduces the Quality Inventory Report. The Report summarizes and discusses the results of this first-time nationwide systematic survey of state waiver QA/QI systems. The report also includes recommendations for CMS follow-up. This letter is also referred to as CMS Quality Communication #4.

In this letter to State Medicaid Directors, Glenn Stanton (Acting Director, DEHPG, CMS) describes the modifications made to the HCBS Quality Framework. The modifications emphasize the importance of building quality into the design of HCBS programs. Included here are Mr. Stanton's letter, the final Quality Framework, and a working draft of \"sub-domains\" which provide specificity within each focus area. This letter is also referred to as CMS Quality Communication #3.

Workforce Tools is a series of publications for people concerned with improving the quality and stability of the home- and community-based direct-care workforce. This brief outlines standard training practices for direct-care workers, identifies training gaps, and provides examples of outstanding programs. This is a tool to help agencies, consumers and workers find and develop appropraite educational resources.

The University of California & San Francisco’s Center for Personal Assistance Services provides research, training, dissemination & technical assistance. The center, which was created with the help of a grant from the National Institute for Disability and Rehabilitation Research, toffers number of useful resources, including materials about the direct-care workforce and a well-stocked library of publications on issues relating to personal assistance services.

This report describes a recruitment effort lead by the Metro Region of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Retardation (DMR). DMR and provider agencies, in collaboration with a communications company, conducted a marketing campaign to recruit direct support professionals. The report highlights the implementation and impact of the project.

This web cast focused on the emerging use of person-centered or person-directed planning as a cross-disability approach to develop an individualized service plan that best incorporates the values of self-determination. Sherrie Anderson, Dianne Duerscheidt, and Debra McLean presented.