Saturday, June 27, 2015

Benefits Of Group Homes For Developmentally Disabled Adults

By Edna Booker


There are a significant number of persons in the general population living with developmental disability. Illnesses commonly associated with these disabilities include cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and autism among others. A personal with mental disability finds it difficult to live comfortably with the general population because of the special needs that they need. Cases of stigmatisation are common. There are many group homes for developmentally disabled adults that may help with these cases.

One of the biggest challenges of developmental abnormalities is that the affected persons are often unable to take care of themselves. Personal grooming, feeding and taking care of day to day personal needs are a major challenge particularly for the most severe cases. This makes them heavily dependent on family members.

You can enrol a relative into any of these homes for a fixed period of time or for an unspecified duration. The duration is dependent on the severity of the condition and how quickly they respond to the therapeutic interventions advanced towards them. Do not need to be in a hurry to get them out of the home; wait until they are ready.

It is important that you maintain the close family relationship even after you send a relative to the facility. Ensure that you visit as often as possible. This practice has been shown to increase the chances of success. At the same time, you will be in a good position to assess any form of progress yourself. This means that you need to identify a group home that is not too far from your family home.

Many different types of homes exist and choosing the best may be a bit difficult. There is need to compare several of them before settling on your final decision. All group homes needed to be licenced to operate. The authority that issues this licence is the Department of Human Services. If the affected individual has a coexisting medical condition as is the case at times, ensure that they are enrolled in a facility where treatment will take place.

Each residential unit is required to have a day activity centre. Day activities are designed to help patients undergo mental training and acquire survival skills. There is also a need to have patients undergo vocational job trainings or placement services. When properly implemented, this activities help with growth of the individuals and their subsequent integration into the community.

One of the advantages of the homes is that the individuals are given an opportunity to explore their talents which would not otherwise be discovered. When properly trained some of these people may be empowered to work alongside able bodied colleagues. Since each person has a unique problem different from the other, specially trained instructors are allocated to each of the adults. It is this instructor that is best placed to identify the skills of the individuals and to sharpen them so that they can be useful to society.

Developmental disability is usually associated with significant limitation in carrying out simple tasks. Some of these tasks are essential for survival meaning that people with the disabilities often need assistance to carry them out. Sending such a person to a group home should be viewed positively as it provides an opportunity to lead a better life.




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