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2501 W. 26th St., Sioux Falls, SD 57105-2498
A Quarterly Publication for Families & Guardians of Those Supported by LifeScape • March 2016
Important Legal Documents for Families
Upcoming Events In This Issue: • Important Legal Documents for Families • You Look Marvelous! • Anne’s Message • CQL Interviewers at LifeScape • Advocacy Advisory Committees Meet our Staff: Gayle Finn Jamie Richardson
March 31, 2016 • East River Electric Mountain Oyster Feed Nicky’s Restaurant, Madison, SD Join us for the 52nd Annual East River Electric Mountain Oyster Feed at Nicky’s Restaurant. April 2, 2016 • Skyforce Night for LifeScape Sanford Pentagon Tickets are $10 if you mention LifeScape at check out. Tickets available through the Skyforce box office 605-332-0605. April 3, 2016 • Pancake Benefit Sioux Falls Convention Center Tickets are $5 in advance from staff members and on our website; $6 at the door.
April 30, 2016 • TableScapes The Country Club of Sioux Falls This year will be an evening event starting at 5:30pm. June 9, 2016 • Lighting the Way Augustana University Visit www.augie.edu/autism for updates and more information. July 15, 2016 • The Wizard of Oz Edith Mortensen Theatre, Augustana University Watch for more information.
See more events and Free Parent Trainings at LifeScapeSD.org/events
Take the Pledge Day
March 2nd was the annual day of awareness for the Spread the Word to End the Word campaign. Alex was one of many people at LifeScape to sign the banner and to take the pledge. Please join us by going online at www.r-word.org and taking the pledge. RESPECT. It’s the new R word. Please consider making a financial gift to support the work of LifeScape. Just click “Make a Donation” at www.LifeScapeSD.org, or to donate to a specific project or discuss legacy giving, contact the LifeScape Foundation at (605) 444-9800.
Many families struggle caring for people with serious physical and mental illnesses. Caretaking, financial stress and the emotional toll can become frustrating. It may be compounded when the caretakers cannot get information to help their family members with important decisions. There are several documents which can help ease some of these problems. Families should consult with a local attorney to make sure these are appropriate for their situation. Power of Attorney for Health Care: Every caretaker for a family member older than 18 has struggled getting information from treating physicians. HIPPA requirements make communication with treating medical providers difficult; often impossible. Sometimes the individual with disabilities just cannot make decisions related to health care. A Power of Attorney for Health Care transfers the power to communicate with the doctors to a designated Agent. The caretaker is then able to make day-to-day health care decisions. These decisions could include medications, surgical procedures, nursing home care, etc. There should be open discussion about an appropriate Agent so that the decisions that are made would be consistent with the wishes of the grantee. Power of Attorney for Finances: Mental and physical illness may make it challenging for someone to properly handle their financial affairs. The Power of Attorney for Finances document appoints an Agent who can deal with banks, businesses, creditors, investments and even
real estate matters. It can be written broadly to give the Agent a great deal of latitude, or with more restrictions to limit the Agent’s powers. When Social Security suspects that a beneficiary cannot handle funds appropriately, they will appoint a Representative Payee who will be responsible for handling Social Security benefits for the benefit of the person with disabilities. The Representative Payee will have to account annually to SSA for how the monies were spent for the individual. Living Will: Issues such as prolonging life with medical technology, organ donation, and do not resuscitate decisions are very personal. With a Living Will, a person’s desires can be outlined early on so that those will be followed by medical personnel. These are not complicated forms and should be on file with the treating physicians. Special Needs Trusts: SSI benefits are means tested, i.e. SSI recipients cannot have more than $2,000 in non-excludable assets. Well-meaning grandparents, or other family members, frequently leave family members with disabilities money in wills, or provide substantial gifts in an effort to provide help. However, these bequests simply mean that the SSI benefits will stop because the assets are now more than $2,000. A carefully written Special Needs Trust will avoid this problem and allow inheritances to family members or friends with disabilities without the loss of SSI benefits. This is an important tool for every family member receiving SSI.
You Look Marvelous – a performance for all abilities! Written by Zach, Student/Actor
On Friday, January 29th, the LifeScape Center for the Arts and Dakota Players along with their cast of 42 kids presented the musical, You Look Marvelous to a sold out audience! The cast was created from children supported by LifeScape and kids who lived around Sioux Falls – some who had disabilities and some who did not. You Look Marvelous told the story of the Suzerains who wanted a new outfit and a group of gypsies who wanted some money in exchange for a special invisible outfit that could only be seen by those who were “wise”. The kids played roles such as Nobles, Philosophers, Ministers of Fashion, Masters of Fashion, Apprentices, and Gypsies and each had really fun costumes! Many of the kids shared that their favorite part was the fun music and dancing! The cast wants to thank everyone who came to the show and for those who helped make it possible for them to perform on stage! Many of the cast members are planning on being a part of the next show coming in July, you might have heard of it before – Wizard of Oz!!! Photo Courtesy Reistroffer Design
Message from Anne Dear Families and Guardians, We are approaching our 2 year anniversary as LifeScape! So much has happened during that time that it is difficult to find the words to describe everything. Maybe if I had to choose a few words, I would choose innovation, cooperation, integration and change. We have embraced and welcomed all of these and as a result we have settled in as LifeScape. New ideas have been made a reality in finding what works best to empower children and adults with disabilities to lead fulfilling lives. “We cannot become what we want to be by remaining what we are.” - Max DuPree This quote has a great message. LifeScape has a vision all people are valued and respected. We need to position ourselves for change and opportunities if we are to keep moving toward that vision. Sometimes change is subtle and may not be noticeable, and sometimes change can be a big, systematic change that is very visible and felt by many people. One example would be conflict free case management (CFCM). Although this is a Federal mandate, and it is a huge shift in how we’ve done business, it brings with it opportunity for more control and choice on the part of the people we support. We like that! But, it is going to take work, cooperation and understanding to make this
transition. The change will be felt by many, but the biggest impact will be on the people who receive supports and their families. Conflict free case management is a big change but one that should also offer new opportunities and choices. It will put the person’s interests first. It will ensure that people have choices and can make decisions based on their needs and that an unbiased case manager will assist them along the way. But even positive change takes time and we are committed to working through this change with each person. Informational meetings for families are being held on March 12 at 10:00am and on March 17 at 3:00pm in the Conference Center at 4100 S. Western Ave. For families whose loved one receives services as an adult, you are feeling this change right now. For families of young children (under 21) at LifeScape, this is something you will experience in your future should your child receive services as an adult. But, who knows? As we continue to grow and evolve as an organization, the system may change and lead us down a different path in the future. Regardless, we will be ready and LifeScape will continue to create new pathways and improve lives. Best wishes,
Anne Rieck McFarland, LifeScape CEO
LifeScape has the state’s highest number of certified CQL interviewers, demonstrating commitment to empowerment. Five LifeScape staff members are now certified by CQL (The Council on Quality and Leadership) as “reliable interviewers” to help the adults and children we support achieve their best-possible quality of life. They are Kristy Chamley, Service Coordinator; Cheray Christiansen, Case Manager Coordinator; Liz DeBerg, Director of Residential Services; Tisha DeGross, Director of Service Coordination & Personal Outcome Measures; and Amy Hoekstra, Manager of Service Coordination & Family Support. Interviewers use CQL’s “Personal Outcome Measures” tool, which was designed to measure quality of life for people with disabilities and mental illness. Those trained in the interviewing technique talk to the person about their lives—what’s good and what could be better. There are 21 different outcomes in three factor areas: My Self, My World, and My dreams. “For each of the 21 outcomes, we determine, by talking to the person and those close to them, if they
have what THEY want in that area of their life, and if we are providing the support necessary to achieve or maintain what THEY want,” says Tisha DeGross, who is also a certified trainer. “For each outcome, we determine if the outcome is present or not and if the support is present or not, giving us 42 data points from each conversation. This data is used by the team to help improve supports for that person. We use them aggregately to see where we need to make improvements in how we deliver services or what services we deliver.” Data is also collected at the state and national levels to measure performance of Community Service Providers like LifeScape. The interviewers train for four days and are tested by CQL for their reliability in their decision making. They are all tested annually by CQL. With the largest number of certified interviewers in South Dakota, LifeScape is better able to carry out its mission of empowering children and adults with disabilities to lead fulfilling lives.
MEET OUR STAFF Gayle Finn
Director of Corporate Compliance and Records, HIPAA Privacy Officer Gayle is challenged daily with maintaining various record systems for the medical, educational and daily living reports of the patients and people supported by LifeScape. A challenge she enjoys with the help of her four staff, three located in Sioux Falls and one in Rapid City. Together, they ensure the records of the patients and people we support are accurate and complete. “Our office credentials the physicians and other providers who see patients and people supported at LifeScape. We also monitor background checks of physicians, vendors, staff and the Board of Directors”, explains Gayle. “As the HIPAA Privacy Officer, I am also responsible for enforcing HIPAA and FERPA laws and dealing with concerns related to conflicts of interest and ethical codes of conduct.” Gayle’s future department goals include all facets of LifeScape utilizing electronic records. “LifeScape has expanded tremendously in different areas of the organization to electronic record keeping. Electronic record keeping has so many advantages such as smoother quality of care, information sharing amongst providers who need access and less space requirements.” Gayle enjoys what she does at LifeScape and appreciates her team, but it’s the people we support that fulfill her day. “I have admiration for the staff and the incredible work they do. I have seen children grow in the past eight years and have witnessed astonishing progress, which is a direct result of the care they receive. LifeScape is able to provide the full scope of care for people with disabilities and I get to witness that every day.” Gayle has been employed with LifeScape for eight years and her office is located at the 26th street location. She and her husband Todd have three grown children and consider themselves as “empty nesters” (except for their dog Scout who still lives at home).
You Are Invited! We invite you to join our Advocacy Advisory committee for families. This committee will provide input to Senior Leaders, the Governing Boards and others as requested on various topics. They will meet on a quarterly basis or as needed to provide a voice for children and adults supported and their families. The Advisory Committee will: • Promote improved communication and relationships with people, families and staff • Provide an opportunity for people and families to offer input into policy and program development • Provide an opportunity for people and families to give feedback regarding satisfaction/dissatisfaction with
Jamie Richardson Project Administrator for the Center for the Arts Currently, Jamie Richardson supports two separate teams at LifeScape – Behavior Services and the Center for the Arts. Although she has enjoyed her position with Behavior Services, she will be transitioning out of that role in a few months to focus on the arts. As the Project Administrator of the Center for the Arts, she coordinates art opportunities for individuals within both Children’s and Adult Services. When visiting with Jamie, it is evident that her passion is the Center for the Arts. “I am privileged to work with groups on a local, regional, and national level in creating visual and performing arts opportunities for the people we support. The Center for the Arts is one of the fastest growing programs within LifeScape and we are thrilled with the way we are touching lives, providing opportunities for individual expression, creating new opportunities for people who have had physical barriers to the arts, and working to educate our community on the abilities each of the individuals we support have!” Jamie’s vision is that one day the Center for the Arts will be a free-standing program with its own accessible building where art programming can be provided on a daily basis. “I hope that the Center for the Arts at LifeScape can become the arts hub which is able to break down any and all barriers which prevent individuals with disabilities from sharing their own creative voice.” Jamie explains, “Although I come to work each day to give, I feel I receive a lot more. A life and a career with purpose and passion, daily reminders of what it means to truly live and triumph over challenges, and enough joy, laughter, and friendships to last a lifetime.” Jamie has been employed at LifeScape for 13 years and her office is located at the 26th street location (although she is often seen at the Adult Services locations as well). She has one son, Carter, who is 10 and is a frequent volunteer within the Specialty School at LifeScape.
current services/programs • Increase understanding and cooperation between people, families and staff Please join us at one of our next meetings: Adult Services Families Wednesday, March 30th /1:00 – 2:00 PM 4100 S. Western Ave / Conference Rm 1 Children’s Services Families Friday, April 8th/ 3:00 – 4:00 PM 2501 W. 26th Street / Training & Orientation Rm Please RSVP to Tisha DeGross, Director of Service Coordination & Personal Outcomes, at 605.444.9880 or Tisha.DeGross@LifeScapeSD.org.