The Insider ~ January 2018 1

The NIRS Report: Institutionalization prevented for Kansans

Through a crisis intervention program for persons with intellectual disabilities and mental illness, institutionalization was prevented for 24 individuals in 33 crisis situations over the course of the 12-month period July 1, 2016 – June 30, 2017. In the past 5 years, the program has served 128 individuals. This is one person’s story.

Three years ago, Patti Blake, coordinator of the Coordinated Resource Support Services (CRSS) program, met a boy who had a history of trouble. It was an unusual case

because this boy seemed to understand the expectations, the rules, the boundaries set by the adults in his life. However, when one listened carefully it became apparent that this boy had better expressive than receptive language skills. He seemed to understand but he didn’t and these crossed signals caused a lot of misunderstandings in his life and a whole lot of trouble. When Patti met him, he had already “aged out” of the foster care system with no place to go and no family “safety net”. He was living in a homeless shelter with no income and

unable to meet the job seeking activity requirement for all shelter residents, to fill out five job applications per day. A task that he might have been glad to do but he didn’t have the skills and thus no way to succeed. He was asked to leave. With no income and no prospects, he was once again homeless. His luck changed when Patti found him. She contacted his father; no help there. She tapped into her network of colleagues and found him emergency shelter with a mental health center in southeast Kansas. This young person was unprepared by the adults in his life to make his own way after school ended. He was not transitioned from school to work, and with his poor behavior and his lack of communication skills, his needs often were unmet. He suffered frostbite during his homeless time outside, everything he had was stolen, and he was left with nothing. With the help of CRSS and Patti Blake, the future looks bright for a boy who could not tie his own shoes and now receives day services through a local agency, lives in his own apartment, and is employed. Story continued on page 2.

In this issue: 1-2…The NIRS Report: CRSS – Crisis Intervention 3…Hands-On Training: The better plan 4-5…Presentations, Workshops, Keynote, etc. 6…KCDD Public Policy Coordinator Visits 6…State of Kansas Length of Service Pins Given 7…Parsons “adopted” a family at Christmas

The InsiderThe University of Kansas

Life Span Institute at Parsons

www.parsons.lsi.ku.edu

Patty Black Moore, Editor

The Insider ~ January 2018 2

Story continued from page 1. Sometimes a crisis happens because someone is being asked to do something they don’t want to do and have no choice in the matter and that simple lack of choice may be a behavioral trigger. Some people have more than one crisis a year. Other times the phone call is about someone who has been abandoned at a mental health center with nowhere to go and no means to get there. More recently, homelessness is more apt to be the most immediate issue; a tragic situation for persons without mental health issues, and one can only imagine what it’s like for someone with intellectual or developmental disabilities and mental illness. When the crisis has been resolved it is really the start of a support relationship with the CRSS team and doesn’t mean that services have stopped. Patti talks about the job and says, “The main duties, as I see them, are to help individuals with intellectual disabilities/ developmental disabilities and who may have mental illness when they are in crisis situations and develop a plan that fits each individual to help them through a problem time. We have a great team to work with and I have met many service-oriented staff that I can rely on for assistance, for which I am very appreciative.” Follow-up with individuals who have received CRSS services occurs regularly, sometimes it is just a drop-in visit, maybe just to get a coke, or have a chat. Patti visits the area CDDOs and mental health centers so that individuals are familiar with her. Then when she’s called in to assist with a crisis, that familiarity alleviates some of the stress and many times it helps, sometimes they remember her voice and that can de-escalate behavior.

Opportunities for choice, even if it’s only when to get up, what to wear, what to eat, where to go, etc., give some quality of life control to the individual with disabilities or mental health challenges. Budget constraints often mean less staff offering fewer choices and the results are more stress and predictably more problematic behaviors that keep Patti and her team busy. CRSS is the only organization like it in the state and offers 9 counties in southeast Kansas 24/7 crisis services. What that means is that there is always someone waiting for a call, even in the middle of the night, to offer the experience and skills necessary to help de-escalate a person in crisis. And Patti will go anywhere to help, even if it means spending the night in jail to help an individual cope because she says, “They become a part of you.” She feels safe “most of the time” and she has learned to ask the right questions when she gets that phone call asking for help. Sometimes she takes another person with her as she heads out to help an individual in crisis and her team has learned to “go with the flow.” Some of her successes include the establishment of a Crisis House where she and/or members of her team can take an individual to calm down in a quiet, nonthreatening environment alleviating danger for all concerned. And she has a big goal: to ensure law enforcement personnel in each of the 9 counties become skilled in recognizing behavioral triggers and learning more ways to reduce the stress in a crisis situation with someone who has intellectual disabilities as well as a mental health diagnosis. She’s been the face, the voice, and the heart of the CRSS Crisis Team for exactly 7 years and the 9-county area is lucky she’s here.

CRSS is designed to stabilize an individual who is in crisis with the goal of preventing the need for hospitalization or institutionalization. Additional outcomes include limiting the person’s contact with law enforcement or removal/eviction from their living situation. Following the initial crisis intervention, this program focuses on the development of recommendations related to the environmental, behavioral, psychological, and or systemic issues that may be contributing to the person’s difficulties.

The Insider ~ January 2018 3

Hands-On Training: The better plan for adult learners

Write it down, type it in, or get out the tool box and put it together, and you’ve got “hands-on training” going on. Assistive Technology for Kansans (ATK)

holds quarterly statewide staff meetings. It’s to be expected that when ATK staff get together, they are learning something. In previous meetings, staff have learned how to create accessible documents (good, indoor work) and another time, on a hot afternoon, outside, all staff learned how to take apart durable medical equipment, clean it, sanitize it, and put it back together. The December 2017 meeting was held in Salina and staff learned how to install a Mount‘n Mover mount on a wheelchair by doing just that. (In the picture above, Stuart Jones assists Trish Reed with installation.) The Mount'n Mover mounting system is a solution for people who need devices and trays attached to their wheelchairs, tables, beds, or floor stands. https://www.mountnmover.com/

The day started with presentations by Rhonda Etter (pictured left), Stuart Jones, and Cassie Ramon, all AT Specialists and skilled in mount installation. Case studies were shared and a lively group discussion centered on experiences, solutions, and tips. Continued on page 4.

The Insider ~ January 2018 4

Article continued from page 3. Then it was time for everyone to get their hands busy and try it themselves under the watchful eyes of their colleagues. When the day was done, staff felt more confident in their own skills and equally important had identified resources and strategies to get expert assistance when needed. Resources include Mount’n Mover customer service (phone calls, skype face-to-face, or email a question with a photo), website resources (where the

instructions are stored), and advice shared from experienced colleagues. (Pictured left, Karin Rasmussen, Demetrius Hill, Gaye Calhoun shown with Cassie Ramon offering installation tips.) If you’re looking for skilled assistive technology advice, ask if the person is “hands on” trained, better yet just call your regional Assistive Technology Access Site at 800-526-3648 and ask for an AT Specialist and you’ve got yourself someone you can count on. Visit the ATK website at www.atk.ku.edu.

PRESENTATIONS, TRAININGS, WORKSHOPS, SEMINARS, KEYNOTE Hargitt, Cristina. (2017, August). Help! My horse is in the waste paper basket! Positive classroom

management strategies from birth-school age. Training for Emporia State University CDC, Emporia, KS.

Hargitt, Cristina. (2017, August). Help! My horse is in the waste paper basket! Positive classroom management strategies from birth-school age. Training for Kansas State University CDC, Manhattan, KS.

Hargitt, Cristina. (2017, August). Supporting relationships through engaging environments. Training at Alma, KS.

Hargitt, Cristina. (2017, August). Supporting relationships through engaging environments. Training at Manhattan, KS.

Hargitt, Cristina. (2017, August). Teaching strategies to enhance transitions. Training at Alma, KS. Holmes, Sarah, (2017, July). Kansas child care provider resources and discussion. Training at Lawrence,

KS. Holmes, Sarah. (2017, August). Help! My horse is in the waste paper basket! Positive classroom

management strategies from birth-school age. Training at Overland Park, KS. Holmes, Sarah. (2017, August). Help! My horse is in the waste paper basket! Positive classroom

management strategies from birth-school age. Training at Overland Park, KS. Holmes, Sarah, (2017, August). Understanding temperaments in young children. Training at Lawrence,

KS. Holmes, Sarah, (2017, October). Observations and intentional planning. Training at Lawrence, KS.

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PRESENTATIONS, TRAININGS, WORKSHOPS, SEMINARS, KEYNOTE Keller, Stephanie. (2017, September). Building your early childhood tool kit. Training at Dodge City, KS. Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). The experiences of implementing routines-based early intervention in

Kansas and Taiwan. Workshop presented to Taiwan Association of Child Development and Early Intervention. Taichung, Taiwan.

Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). Foundation of early intervention. Workshop presented at the Department of Special Education, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan.

Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). From evidence to practice and from practice to policies: Connecting researchers, government, practitioners, and families. Keynote delivered to International Conference of Child Development and Early Intervention, Taichung, Taiwan.

Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). The implementation of early childhood intervention and policies promotion. Workshop presented to Association of Child Development and Early Intervention, Taichung, Taiwan.

Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). Supportive learning in pre-service training in early intervention – family support. Seminar presented to the Graduate Institute of Early Intervention and the Master and PhD programs of Rehabilitation Services, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.

Kemp, Peggy. (2017, November). Working with families in early intervention. Workshop presented at the Department of Special Education, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan.

Newton, Janet. (2017, August). Introduction to designing environments. Presentation at YMCA child care staff annual training, Wichita, KS.

Newton, Janet. (2017, October). Building your early childhood tool kit. Training at Wichita, KS. Newton, Janet. (2017, October). Engaging and partnering with families. Presentation at KSAEYC

Conference, Manhattan, KS. Newton, Janet. (2017, October). STEM for babies and toddlers. Presentation at KSAEYC Conference,

Manhattan, KS. Newton, Janet. (2017, December). Behavior and guidance. Training presented at the First Christian

Church, Dodge City, KS. Newton, Janet. (2017, December). Power of positive communication. Training presented in Hutchinson,

KS. Newton, Janet. (2017, December). Teaching strategies to enhance transitions. Training presented in

Hutchinson, KS. Rinkel, Phoebe, & Holmes, Sarah. (2017, December). ITSN Updates: Supporting child care providers and

programs in Kansas. Presentation to KDHE Child Care Surveyors Regional Meeting, Topeka, KS. Rinkel, Phoebe, & Kile, Kasey. (2017, August). Preventing suspension and expulsion in early care and

education settings. Facilitators for KCCTO online training course. Sack, Sara, & Goldman, Amy. (2017, November). Accessing assistive technology (AT) resources for SLPs

& audiologists. Seminar presented at the 2017 ASHA Convention, Los Angeles, CA. Troutt, Tanisha. (2017, September). Building your early childhood tool kit. Training at Chanute, KS. Troutt, Tanisha. (2017, October). Understanding temperaments of young children. Chanute, KS. Troutt, Tanisha. (2017, November). Behavior and guidance of young children. Training presented at

Brighter Beginnings, Chanute, KS. Troutt, Tanisha. (2017, November). Behavior and guidance in young children. Training presented at

SEK-CAP, Girard, KS.

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Merrow Visits Parsons LSI Valerie Merrow, Public Policy Coordinator with Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities (KCDD), visited the Life Span Institute at Parsons offices in October, 2017. She met with staff from several Parsons-based projects including Southeast Kansas Respite Services (SEKRS), Kansas Inservice Training System (KITS), and Assistive Technology for

Kansans (ATK). Dave Lindeman, director, LSI/Parsons, said, “It is always nice to talk with our partners in the state, discuss our programs and services here at Parsons, and to explore possible collaborations.” In the picture, Valerie Merrow talks with Sheila Simmons, program coordinator, ATK, about assistive technology and the statewide services available for children and adults. For more information about the KCDD, visit their website, http://www.kcdd.org/

Length of Service to the State of Kansas: Pins Delivered

The State of Kansas, Employee Award & Recognition Program provides an employee award and recognition system authorized by K.S.A. 75-37, 105. The program is designed to recognize an employee’s contribution to the objectives of the agency and state government through excellence in performance and service. The award category, Length of Service, recognizes notable anniversaries in service to the State of Kansas, which include at least 10, 20, 30 or 40-year anniversaries. This award is worthy of note when you

consider the continuity of exemplary work accomplished and evaluated each year. Congratulations to Janet Newton and Tammy Schoehofer on their 20 years of service to Kansans.

Janet Newton, M.S., (pictured right), is a

technical assistance specialist with the KCCTO-KITS Infant Toddler Specialist Network.

Tammy Schoenhofer, (pictured left), is an

accounting specialist with the Life Span Institute at Parsons.

The Insider ~ January 2018 7

A Christmas Gift

For a number of years, Life Span Institute

at Parsons staff have adopted a family for

Christmas. This year we identified a

family associated with the respite care

program, SEKRS. This person has worked

with respite since 2011. During that time,

she relieved dozens of “caregivers” and

always with a special willingness to do

whatever was asked of her, from spending

nights with individuals in crisis to

homemaking services, she always

answered our calls with “YES!” Recently,

her situation changed when her son and

his two young children had to move in

with her and now she is needed at home

with her grandchildren. She adores the

children: a boy age 6 and a girl age 4. As

you can imagine, it is a struggle just to

keep up with the monthly bills and to

make ends meet, so there won’t be much left for Christmas. Diane Salyers, SEKRS coordinator, says,

“Knowing her as I do, I really believe she and her family would be an ideal one to bless this Christmas.”

Dave Lindeman, director, LSI/Parsons, wrote, “Just a short note to thank all who were able to contribute

to our Christmas Family this year. We were able to give the family $385. The family was very

appreciative and grateful. Again, we thank each of you for your generosity.”

The Insider is archived online at http://www.parsons.lsi.ku.edu/newsletters

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