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<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u201cIt takes a village to raise a child.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
You\u2019ve heard that saying dozens of times. Why? Because it\u2019s true. And it\u2019s especially true for families of children with developmental or intellectual disabilities, whose children (and the rest of the family) need additional support and structure.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
But the \u201cvillage\u201d isn\u2019t easy to find. Even well-meaning friends and family member don\u2019t have the professional knowledge, training, and resources to support children with disabilities and their families in a healthy and safe way. Luckily there are professionals who can help, like the Children\u2019s Support Professionals (CSPs) at ALSO. \u201cWe\u2019re a resource,\u201d says ALSO Behavioral Specialist Sunny Ellis. \u201cWe bring more people to the table\u2014people who are motivated and invested to help your child succeed.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Engaging with Children\u2019s Services can also help your entire family, especially parents of children with disabilities. \u201cIt allows the parent to take on the role of parent and less of the caregiver\/professional,\u201d says Sarah Scassellati, another Behavioral Specialist at ALSO. \u201cYou can be mom and dad and have that support for your child, but also that support for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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If you haven\u2019t benefitted from Children\u2019s Services yet, you\u2019ll need to begin by applying to Oregon Department of Human Services\u00a0Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Services (ODDS). You can find an application at your county\u2019s Community Developmental Disabilities Program (CDDP). Find a list of CDDPs here<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If your child is eligible for Intellectual\/Developmental Disability Services, a county services coordinator will assess your child\u2019s needs, and then send referral packets to different agencies like ALSO. \u201cWe\u2019ll review them and based on the openings we have, we assess whether we have the capacity to accept them,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cWe also make sure they\u2019re a good fit, especially with residential services. Each home has two to three kids, so we want to make sure we match up kids who will enjoy each other\u2019s presence.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Once a referral is accepted, it goes back to the county worker, who will meet with the agency and the child\u2019s family. Families typically meet with several different service providers before deciding which best meets their child\u2019s needs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The process can take a while, as the demand is great and the waiting list long. The pandemic didn\u2019t help, either. \u201cWhen COVID hit, many places had to close their doors or temporarily put a halt on bringing in new individuals,\u201d says Sunny. \u201cBut don\u2019t give up,\u201d she counsels. \u201cBe that squeaky wheel. Talk to your coordinator about the services you need and tell them that you continue to need them.\u201d She suggests getting Family Support<\/a> or a Wraparound<\/a> coordinator involved. \u201cThen you will have people who are on your side of the court, who will make sure you’re crossing your T’s and dotting your I\u2019s, who will look out for any other unforeseen issues, and continue to advocate for those additional supports even prior to your child entering services.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The ODDS website<\/a> lists a variety of resources for eligible families of children with disabilities, including:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n All these services exist to support families, not to usurp their rights. \u201cThese are not parents who have lost their parental rights or who can’t parent,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cThese are parents who have been through a lot and have realized that for their kid to thrive, they need additional support. It\u2019s almost a kind of co-parenting situation.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n ALSO, a nonprofit organization, offers both in-home support and 24-hour residential care. In-home support is exactly what it sounds like: extra help for children who need more attention and engagement. Professionals help children to build skills in the family home or out in the local community.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Residential care may be a good choice for children who need more structure or predictability than can be provided in the family home. \u201cWhen you have a home with just one or two parents, it can be really challenging for families of children with higher needs,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cWhereas we (at ALSO) have a team of twelve to twenty. That allows us to be more creative.\u201d For example, teams at residential houses can adapt environments to keep children safe or encourage them to build skills like self-regulation.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Families who partner with ALSO\u2019s residential services are often surprised by their child\u2019s accommodations. There may be additional supports, like a sensory rooms and visual reminders about house expectations tacked to the walls, but the houses are typical family homes with big backyards in residential neighborhoods. They\u2019re designed with kids in mind: one house exhibits space-themed murals, while another boasts an air hockey table and retro arcade game. Children can also customize their own rooms. One of ALSO current residents has bright yellow stripes in his room for Pikachu, while another recently redecorated. \u201cIt used to be Spiderman-themed,\u201d says Sarah, \u201cbut he’s moved on, so now everything is blue.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n There are many additional organizations that are dedicated to advocating and providing resources to families and children with disabilities, including:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Families\u2014and the child receiving services\u2014work with ALSO behavioral specialists to establish goals, create a support plan that identifies the coping skills the child needs to reach their goals, and then work with the child to strengthen those skills.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n \u201cA lot of the skills our employees use can very easily be used by mom and dad as well,\u201d says Sarah. And it can be helpful for children to get information from someone besides their parents. \u201cWe have one girl who loves her parents and her sister and brother, but like many teenagers, she is tired of hearing from them,\u201d Sarah says. \u201cBut she\u2019s also developed a really strong relationship with her DSP (direct support professional), who pretty much echoes what mom and dad are saying, but she (the resident) is more willing to try something with this friend who is not mom and dad.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n In-home services often work on goals in community settings. \u201cIt could be going out to the park and playing with other kids and practicing taking turns, and waiting in line, and using the slide safely,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cOr making choices whether to go to the mall or to the water park.\u201d Children may also practice skills around the house, like cleaning their rooms, packing their lunches, or putting laundry away.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n In residential care, the end-goal is often a less restrictive environment. Associate Director of Residential services Tanja Garrot says that since children are learning coping skills, the goal is a realistic one. \u201cChildren may be able to move to a foster home, or attain the skills needed so the family feels comfortable having them come home.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The children enjoy successes along the path to their goals: big ones like graduating from high school, and smaller\u2014but no less important\u2014 everyday successes. \u201cJust a couple of weeks ago, one of the kiddos got really mad at mom and dad at their house and had to come home,\u201d says Sarah. \u201cHe was really upset about that, but because he had the opportunity to come back to this home, he was able to calm down and tell a staff person why he was angry, and what he really wanted. Then he called mom and dad and they problem-solved in a way he couldn\u2019t have done without that space from Mom and Dad.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n ALSO wants families to be as involved as possible. \u201cWe’re a problem-solving collaborative,\u201d says Sunny. \u201cBut we are also flexible and understanding about the variety of families dynamics that we work with,\u201d she says. \u201cWe also understand that continuing to strengthen natural support systems will be the best and most durable kinds of supports. Though we get to be a part of a family\u2019s chapter, we are not writing their whole story.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n ALSO meets families where they are\u2014often literally. \u201cOne thing I think we do very well is getting to know people,\u201d says Sunny. \u201cWe want to really see who they are and work with them on their important goals for their children. And since ALSO serves people from all over the state, we\u2019ll take a drive down to Bend or wherever so we can meet with families in person.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n It\u2019s just one way ALSO demonstrates genuine compassion. Sunny believes that\u2019s another thing that sets ALSO apart. \u201cIt’s not just talking the talk,\u201d she says. \u201cIt’s walking the walk\u2014actually following through with what we say we’re going to do, which doesn\u2019t always happen with other providers.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Sunny also believes that ALSO is the resource that families with children with disabilities need. \u201cWe are that village people talk about. We\u2019re the community that shows up when folks need somebody who’s able to assist them, whether it’s 2:00 p.m. or 2:00 a.m. or in between. We provide that support, which can be so needed, especially to the families who may have been in crisis for quite a long time.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n We can be your village, providing you with the services that will help your child with developmental or intellectual disabilities grow, and your family thrive. Contact us today at info@alsoweb.org<\/a>, or call us at 503-489-6565<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Helping Your Family Thrive: Resources and Services for Children with Disabilities in Oregon \u201cIt takes a village to raise a child.\u201d You\u2019ve heard that saying dozens of times. Why? Because it\u2019s true. And it\u2019s especially true for families of children with developmental or intellectual disabilities,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3483,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-blogs","category-children-and-family"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Resources for Children with Disabilities Are Available?<\/h2>\r\n
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Support Services Offer Children with Disabilities the Space to Grow<\/h2>\r\n
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<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nALSO: \u201cA Problem-Solving Collaborative\u201d<\/h2>\r\n
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<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nGet the Disability Support You Need<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n