Quality

A pilot project in southeastern Minnesota has developed a quality assurance approach that focuses on matters important to people receiving supports and their families and provides a means of quality improvement, as opposed to licensing minimum standards. This report is based on an independent evaluation of the project, which used extensive interviews, focus groups and reviews of written materials and project files. The report provides intervention, implementation, and impact information.

This report describes how the State of South Carolina is addressing a problem of inconsistency between an individual’s needs and the service plans developed to meet identified needs. South Carolina added a feature to its automated Case Management System that reminds case managers of needs identified in the assessment that may potentially be included in the service plan. The report details the interventions, implications, and impact of this automated system.

Presentation given by Steven Lutzky, PhD., former Director of Community Systems Improvement for the Disabled and Elderly Health Programs Group, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, at the AoA Conference in Orlando, Florida in September 2003.

Notice of invitation to participate in the Housing Work Group.The Housing Work Group will provide a means for grantees to network with peers and to engage in open a discussion on how to develop affordable, accessible, and integrated housing choices for persons with disabilities. Each monthly call will focus on a specific issue or challenge and may include an expert presenter.

A link is provided here to a press release from HiSoftware Company, a content quality management solutions company. The press release announces that the State of Florida Governor's ADA Working Group will be implementing AccVerify, AccRepair and AccMonitor Server from HiSoftware Company to manage state-wide accessibility initiatives.

This multi-page questionnaire is used to assess universal client satisfction for users of personal assistants in Nevada.

The State of Colorado has established Single Entry Point (SEP) agencies that provide an access point for several publicly funded long-term supports for people with disabilities, including older people, people with physical disabilities, people living with AIDS, and people with brain injuries. SEP agencies provide education to individuals about available options and provide easier access for individuals and families to the programs. This report describes the SEP system in Colorado.

The Quality Mall is \"a place where you can find lots of free information about person-centered supports for people with developmental disabilities. Each of the Mall stores has departments you can look through to learn about positive practices that help people with developmental disabilities live, work and participate in our communities and improve the quality of their supports.\"

A link is provided to the website for Wisconsin's Family care project. This project seeks to provide options for long-term care. In addition to the weblink, there is also a report on the program.

The Living and Working in the Community 2003 conference, sponsored by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), was held March 4-5, 2003. Participants included Medicaid grantees, consumers, advocates, Federal and State representatives, providers, and academics. The link provide here will direct you to the presentations from this conference. Topics include: Quality assurance, nursing facility transition, mental health, single point of entry, workforce issues and housing issues.