Many researchers have studied positive psychology and what it means for humans to “flourish”. Professor Martin Seligman surveyed thousands of individuals and studied outcomes regarding the facets of positive psychology and what cultivates wellbeing in our lives. From the results, he devised the acronym “PERMAH” to reflect what seemed to be the most important influential...
I recently heard something that shocked me while listening to a distinguished counselor within my community. He said, “Communication may be the most dangerous thing we do.” I was immediately taken aback by this. Initially, it made zero sense – and so I set out to investigate a little deeper. As it turns out, it...
Technology is never a replacement for human interaction between care providers and the people they serve; it’s a tool. I think this pandemic has certainly accentuated that notion as we all revisit the way things used to be – the social gatherings, face-to-face communications, and physical touch. Technology can optimize time management for the organization...
The Charles Lea Center, located in Spartansburg, South Carolina, helps people with intellectual disabilities and chronic medical conditions and helps them work to their fullest potential. Their services are based on the principles of person-centered thinking that looks at the strengths of each person and uses those skills to promote greater independence. MeMinder is a...
Our team at CreateAbility is always examining challenges in the IDD space from the perspective of technology. While we know that technology should never be a total replacement for the meaningful connection that DSPs have with their person served; we understand how technology can help DSPs optimize their time and save agencies money. Most importantly, technology...
1.) Assistive Technology affords the person being served the ability to have their plans in front of them at all times. Antiquated, printed copies of care plans on are not mobile - and are not as easily changed as the person-served accomplishes their goals. Assistive technology grants individuals with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to feel more a part of the planning process as they...
The benefits of remote supports have been a true game-changer for employment and residential support organizations/agencies in the Intellectual Developmental Disability (IDD) space. Organizations in the senior care market have also experienced similar benefits from remote supports as it offered a big advancement in the quality of care that they can offer their clients. In general, remote supports have equipped providers with virtual “eyes” inside of the homes of the people they serve without being intrusive to their lives....
Avatalk is one of CreateAbility’s most user-friendly apps in both use and implementation. It was designed as a tool to non-intrusively engage the person being served and solicit quick responses to important questions from an avatar-led platform. (To see avatalk in action, click here to view the demo.) Since avatalk’s inception, it is being creatively...
DSPs and support staff members’ jobs are not just to keep their clients safe and healthy, but to also work with them on establishing goals for themselves and working to achieve them. Often times, people with IDDs also have a dual diagnosis; another behavioral challenge in addition to their intellectual developmental disability. Behavioral challenges can...
Everyone deserves the right to control their own lives and to experience the intrinsic value of making their own decisions, including people with intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD). In fact, “independence” for people with IDD can mean anything from being able to pick out their own clothing – to needing less supervision – to being able...