Find in Table of Contents:

External Program Review Committee (EPRC) minutes

Date of meeting: June 3, 2021

DSD liaisons: Stacie Enders and Ari Dionisopoulos

Type: Whole committee

Location: Remote only due to the COVID-19 health pandemic

Attendees: Kim Frost, Laura Daire, Lindsay Nash, Jodi Greenstein, Susie Haben, Dan Baker, Mike Boston, Melanie Eidsmoe, Liz Harri and Stacy Danov

Not present: Tatiana Kerestesh, Danielle Bishop and Mary Piggott

Public comments

There were no public comments during the meeting.

Vote

Those in favor of approving the May 2021 meeting minutes:

· Kim Frost: yes

· Laura Daire: yes

· Lindsay Nash: yes

· Jodi Greenstein: yes

· Susie Haben: yes

· Dan Baker: yes

· Mike Boston: abstain

· Melanie Eidsmoe: yes

· Liz Harri: yes

· Stacy Danov: yes

Discussions

See additional information in the meeting agenda.

2022 legislative session

· Committee members were invited, over the next several months, to recommend proposals to the commissioner for the next legislative session.

· The committee will ask the Disability Services Division (DSD) legislative lead to do a presentation for the committee on the legislative process, what it looks like, who’s involved, etc.

· In July, senior leadership will be doing a presentation on 2021 legislative session updates. Registration is available on the Odyssey 2021 webinar series webpage until 4 p.m. on Thursday, July 15, 2021.

Positive Support Transition Plan (PSTP)-related documents

· The quality checklist draft updates are now finished and have been sent to the Communications team for development and publishing. It is unknown when they will get a chance to work on it though.

· Stacy and Kim finished their PSTP example draft. Stacie will take a look at it next week and follow up to get it ready for an EPRC meeting.

· Once a final draft of the PSTP example is created, an example PSTP quarterly review will be created that will mirror the content in the PSTP example.

Review of the committee’s 2020 Olmstead recommendations

Committee members reviewed their 2020 Olmstead recommendations. They noted:

· People often assume that community life involves a lot of interaction with others. However, some people value time by themselves and do not want a lot of friends, and they are happy with that. We should not make assumptions on the preferences of others.

· Some people do not know what opportunities they have, so we need to make sure they are informed in a way that makes sense to them, but also make sure they have the option to say no. It is helpful to understand why they say no to activities. It is important to explore what types of environments appeal to that person.

· The pandemic has helped providers recognize people who do not want to be pushed out into the community. Some people are okay with finding things to do in the home. Some confrontations have come from power struggles with staff.

· PSTP quality of life indicators: these can be helpful tools to document what is important to the person. Not every person needs a goal related to going out more. It’s important to ask what the person wants for their life.

· EPRC meetings will continue to be remote in July. Management will give us at least a 30 day notice before we will meet in-person again.

Closing

Committee members may share additional information and discuss

· If a budget is not approved by the end of June, DHS might be shut down in July. If this happens, EPRC meetings will be canceled and members will not receive compensation for the missed work.

What is going well? What should we change? What have we learned?

· We appreciate the discussion about preferences in social life.

· We appreciate the comment that some people do not know what their options are, and we need to support informed decision making.

Members are welcome to recommend topics for upcoming committee meetings

· The committee would like to keep tabs on the staffing shortage crisis. The shortage is the number one issue right now. Wages are non-competitive with other businesses, such as restaurants or stores. Caring for children is also a problem for parents who are trying to find work, especially when people are sent home when illness spreads. The committee will keep the shortage as a reoccurring topic on EPRC meeting agendas.

Report this page

Community-Based Services Manual (CBSM)