Moving from systems-centered planning to person-centered planning
The historical approach to service planning focused on systems and programs to keep the person healthy and safe. The person-centered approach shifts the focus toward what is important TO the person (i.e., personal preferences and desires) while maintaining a balance of what is important FOR the person (i.e., health and safety).
A person-centered approach recognizes each person’s right to make choices for him/herself, even if those choices differ from the ones the people who care for them would make. Person-centered plans often include creative options beyond a standard “menu” of services.
The following ideas have been adapted from the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration’s Manual for Person-Centered Planning Facilitators (PDF).
Person-centered planning
WHAT IT IS | WHAT IT IS NOT |
Identifies the needs essential to a good life (as defined by the person) and plans supports to address those | Planning a lifetime of programs |
Takes time to explore and understand each person’s interests, strengths and preferences | Makes assumptions about people (e.g., who may or may not want or be able to work) |
Designs innovative options | Relies upon a limited number of program options (i.e., the “menu”) |
Creates plans to reflect each person’s individuality and the characteristics of the local community | Planning for one person looks similar to those for other people |
Describes goals that have specific examples of positive activities and experiences to increase or strive for (even if they seem hard-to-reach) | Focuses goals on negative behaviors that need to be changed or decreased |
Increases the person’s valued role in the community by developing and deepening relationships and community life, as the person wants | Does not mention relationships or community life in support plans |
Includes friends, family, and community members as “supports” and does so in new and creative ways | Creates support plans that only include paid staff |
Has the person drive the planning. The person chooses the place and the people to include. The person is supported to lead the meetings, as the person wants. | Has the service planner drive planning. The planner chooses the time, the place and who is present. |
Writes support plans that show respect for the person, his/her humanity and uniqueness | Uses clinical language throughout the plan (e.g., “client,” diagnoses, medications, therapies, etc.) |
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