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- Ask your case manager about his or her knowledge
of living options beyond your family
member’s current residence.
- Contact others if your case manager lacks
knowledge of programs in which you and your
family member are most interested.
- Seek out individuals who are willing to listen to
you explain the types of supports you and your
family member desire before describing the
services their agency offers.
- Talk with people at the “House Manager”
level. Administrative staff are often distanced
from what happens at individual homes.
- Given high turnover rates among direct service
staff, find out how long a person has worked at a
specific home prior to asking them to respond to
your questions.
- Ask similar questions to several staff and
compare their answers to check for reliability.
- Visit the homes in which you are interested with
your family member and spend time there. Ask if
it would be okay with residents if you came for a
meal.
- If serious about a residence, visit it at several
different times during the day both when it is
busy and during more quiet times when it may be
easier to talk with staff and residents.
- The best source of information about the quality
of supports an agency offers is the people who
receive them. Find out if current residents and
their families are willing to speak to you and
ask several of them about their personal
experiences.
- Ask staff if they will visit and spend time with
your family member with a disability so that they
can get to know them. Observe the way they
interact with your family member.
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