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The
basic operational premise of providing family services through the
Short Term Assistance and Referral (STAR) Program is simple. Family
Support Specialists work directly with Hope Community Resource,
Inc.'s (Hope's) Executive Director in the provision of "Whatever
it Takes" supports to families eligible to receive services
under the category of developmental disabilities. Family empowerment
and resource referral through effective networking are critical
to STAR's success.
With
no agency red-tape to mire through, decisions and response within
the STAR Program are immediate. Supplemental resources of an in-kind
nature, such as discretionary funds and voluntary personnel contribute
to the effectiveness of the program. With active listening and family
control in mind, individualized solutions to problems and concerns
are as unique as a family itself.
Members
of Hope's STAR Program have attended Individual Education Plan (IEP)
meetings and interacted with school districts as requested; assisted
with eligibility, emergency housing and food supplies; helped with
transportation and emergency travel; established a base for the
procurement of special and adaptive equipment, home modifications
and administered a grant for environmental modifications; stepped
in on employment situations and referred to vocational counseling;
made community and natural connections with the family; identified
resources and guided families into agencies for specialized assistance;
utilized hospice and medical resources; seen families through the
stress of holidays by procuring gifts, clothing and food; voluntarily
painted rooms and delivered furniture. The list of what can be acheived
through the STAR Program is as endless as the unique needs inherent
in each and every human being.
The
Family Support Specialists are the core and critical link between
consumers and providers. The majority of Family Support Specialists
are parents of children with special needs; all are seasoned professionals.
One Family Support Specialist is well versed in autism, another
in complex medical conditions, another in developmental disabilities.
They monitor progress in consumer satisfaction with the STAR Adivsory
Board and the resources of Hope. The average cost of the STAR Program
actually calculates to less than $900.00 per family on an annual
basis. The cost savings in crisis prevention and prevention of broken
families is beyond calculation.
All supports under the STAR Program encapsulate and are founded
upon the following guiding values:
Supports should be short-term in nature, of limited duration.
All support should enable the consumer/family to retrieve
a true sense of empowerment in self-advocacy, resource identification
and referral and problem solving.
Intervention must not foster an "agency dependency,"
but provide interim assistance to families in navigating the
system and securing effective individualized supports.
Supports must be family designed, developed and controlled.
Supports must reflect minimal levels of effective service
delivery.
Supports must be developed by and through a process of active
listening to families and be delivered in an unobtrusive manner. |
The primary
caveat of STAR is, "the family is the source of power and action
to resolve many of temporal/chronic concerns." As such, it is
imperative that co-dependency be supplanted by true empowerment. Supports
are given at minimal levels when possible and practicable with the
goal of placing the family in the "driver's seat." Response
is immediate regardless of time of day or day of the week. All Family
Support Specialists have cell phones and have developed a strategy
for "continuous coverage" of emergency calls. That strategy
also utilizes the Hope's 24-hour on-call system as supplemental to
the program's resources.
Services
include, but are not limited to the following:
A rapid response to emergency requests and situations.
The
provision of critical supports at the earliest levels of intervention.
The
provision of advocacy and resource referral services.
Individualized
assistance in isolating and procuring necessary specialized
equipment, home modifications and adaptive equipment.
The
effective building of community connections to include the utilization
of a multiplicity of natural supports as needed.
The
provision of time limited in-home and other supports to alleviate
crisis, provide a period of stability and discover additional
family resources.
Participation
in eligibility: identification, eligibility applications, Wait
List assessments and related submissions.
Facilitation
of emergency travel and associated accommodations.
Networking
among community resources for collaborative planning and service
delivery.
Attendance
at Care Conferences, IEP sessions and related meetings at the
initial request of the family.
Assisting
families in the navigation of the DD systems with the goal of
self-navigation.
Attendance
at hospital rounds, as requested, and provision of initial resources
for newly identified infants and children.
Temporarily
assisting adults in goals of independence, employment and community
connections.
"Whatever
it Takes" to empower families, avert crisis and keep families
together. |
For
more information regarding the STAR Program, please contact a member
of the Family Support Program at 1-907-561-5335.
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