Family Voices Indiana

DDRS presented a couple of webinars about managing life during the pandemic to give families information, ideas, and resources.  In case you missed it, the webinars are linked below.

In part 1, there is information about maintaining relationships, learning from home, and resources to meet basic needs.


In part 2, you'll find information on managing challenging behaviors in adults & children, planning for the future, and reducing caregiver burnout.

Parents who have children with disabilities are receiving multiple and sometimes confusing messages about coronavirus (COVID-19). You are invited to participate in this research about COVID-19. The University of Connecticut Center of Excellence in Disabilities are conducting this study to 1) identify gaps in current communication and public health messaging about COVID-19 and 2) identify issues facing parents of children with disabilities during this time. The survey is anonymous.  The study is a one-time, online survey.

This study is being conducted by the UConn University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) with support from the Department of Public Health Sciences at UConn School of Medicine. 

The survey can be found here: https://uconn.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0v9k95dKr4vsQAd

Indiana Statewide Independent Living Council has created a document called "Notice of My Healthcare Rights".  This is a form that our peers with disabilities, including older adults with conditions of aging and our peers with disabilities with limited English proficiency, can use when seeking or receiving healthcare. The second page of the document contains contact information for federal, state and local agencies and organizations that are available to assist you with additional resources, referrals and legal and advocacy efforts if your feel as though your rights have been or are being violated. To meet various accessibility needs of our disability community, this document/form is provided on our website at https://www.insilc.org/covid-19/ in English and Spanish, in PDF and plain text, in standard and large print, and in easy-to read, plain language. The hope is that this document will help inform, support and empower you if you need to seek and receive healthcare durin…

The Division of Aging recognizes that agencies may face staffing challenges due to COVID-19. Providers play a crucial role in helping participants remain at home, especially during these unprecedented times. As such, the division is waiving agency hiring requirements for new and current direct care staff willing and able to provide in-home care to participants.  Please be advised that normal requirements outlined in 455 IAC 2.  The requirements pertain to the following: General Provider Requirements (A) Applicable federal, state, county, or municipal regulations that govern the operation of the agency. (B) Family and social services administration and DDARS laws, rules, and policies. (2) Provide proof of the following: (A) That insurance is in force as prescribed in 455 IAC 2-12-1(4). (B) That any employee, agent, or staff of the provider agency meets all standards and requirements for the specific services the person will be providing. (C) That licensed health professionals are chec…

Excerpts from the First Steps April Newsletter


FS Newsletter Apr 2020 by Family Voices Indiana on Scribd

Span Fs Covid 4-01-2020final Update 1 by Family Voices Indiana on Scribd

https://spanadvocacy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SFS-Covid-4-01-2020FINAL-Update-1.pdf

Dr. Anthony Santella, Associate Professor of Health Professions at Hofstra University will be hosting multiple webinars on COVID-19 designed for elementary and middle school children. While children are the primary audience, parents/guardians, teachers, counselors, school administrators, health professions who work with youth and anyone who is interested in getting information on the novel coronavirus or COVID-19 are invited to attend.
The webinar will use medically accurate and age appropriate content for children in grades K-8. The content will focus on basic facts related to the science and public health along with frequently asked questions about how the coronavirus impacts things that matter to children like their friends, pets, vacations, etc.
Youth Webinars Originally shared by Covering Kids & Families of Indiana

The U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) invites you to participate in a national online dialogue called "Providing Expanded Family and Medical Leave and Paid Sick Leave to Employees Affected by COVID-19 National Online Dialogue" (Idea Scale site). You're invited to share your ideas on how USDOL can help employers and employees understand their responsibilities and rights, respectively, under the expanded family and medical leave and paid sick leave provisions of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). See table summarizing the Act’s provisions. From The Arc and the Center for Public Representation: The Families First Act extended emergency paid sick leave to many people, but the provisions do not explicitly extend to caregivers who need to take sick days to provide care to an adult family member with a disability or an older adult because that individual’s care worker is sick or their day program has closed. The legislative text is also slightly vague if “concern…

In COVID-19 ChildcarePrograms 04.02.20 by Family Voices Indiana on Scribd

Originally from the Governor's Council for People with Disabilities "Disability Matters" Publication
Coronavirus is particularly difficult for people with intellectual disabilities, many of whom are particularly reliant on routines, on familiar activities, on seeing their families and friends.
How can you “break bad news of coronavirus”? How can you support people to understand what is happening and to cope with the sudden changes to their lives? This article is written for those who support people with intellectual disabilities in their daily lives and contains some hints and tips to help you talk about the pandemic