A message from Director Hauck |
I want to start this message by saying that I am incredibly grateful for the work county boards, Intermediate Care Facilities (ICFs), and waiver providers have put into the planning, preparation, and implementation of the OhioISP. This transition is a system-wide effort to provide people with disabilities and their families with more consistent planning and a single plan that reflects the outcomes they wish to achieve. And to that end, I say thank you to everyone who is working so hard across the state to accomplish that mission.
With a consistent assessment and plan for all Ohioans with developmental disabilities, providers and Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) will have one plan to learn. Service and Support Administrators (SSAs) and ICF Qualified Intellectual Disability Professionals (QIDPs) will have thorough, standardized training, and collaboration across counties and settings, as well as a more straightforward and more reliable process for transferring plans across the state.
The most important benefit of a single assessment and plan is how it allows Ohioans with developmental disabilities and their families to be at the center of the planning process and to truly drive the conversation toward their desired outcomes. I have heard from counties and ICFs that have already been implementing the OhioISP that they are having different and more productive conversations during the assessment process. As a result, their plans are now more reflective of the person at the center of the OhioISP. This is what excites me most about the OhioISP and why I believe we must do everything we can to ensure a successful transition.
We have learned so much because of your willingness to work with the OhioISP and provide us with honest feedback on what is working and not working. You have told us that you are excited to learn new information about the people you support, you enjoy the online system, and the documentation sheet generation will be helpful to providers. Additionally, you have told us that the transition to the OhioISP is difficult, it is taking more time than initially anticipated, and current character limits are preventing you from putting important information into the OhioISP. Based on the feedback, we are taking the following steps:
- We are extending the deadline by which all county boards and ICFs must have completed their transition into the OhioISP by six months from the current deadline listed in the rule. This means that all assessments and individual service plans required by OAC 5123-3-03 (Licensed Residential Facilities – Person-Centered Planning) and OAC 5123-4-02 (Service and Support Administration) must be in OhioISP no later than June 30, 2024.
- We are adjusting the SSA rule OAC 5123-4-02 (Service and Support Administration) to clarify that use of the OhioISP is only required for people who receive home and community services through the IO, SELF, and Level 1 waivers by June 30, 2024.
- We are increasing character limits throughout the OhioISP.
- We are increasing DODD training and technical assistance to county boards, waiver providers, and ICFs across the state to prioritize onboarding efforts.
There are multiple steps county boards and ICFs can take to have a successful transition to the OhioISP. I hope the additional time for implementation is an opportunity to leverage the onboarding guides. These guides include information on training, communication, outreach, ensuring access to DODD applications, and several "how to" videos.
Again, I want to thank everyone who is putting so much work into ensuring the transition to the OhioISP is successful. I acknowledge the hard work that everyone has done to get us to this point and look forward to partnering on the important work we all have ahead of us.
Sincerely,
|
|
|
|
Onboarding Guides - Highlights
The county board and/or ICF onboarding guides provide best practices for transitioning to the OhioISP. Here are the key areas included in the guides:
Self-Assessment: Each onboarding guide includes a self-assessment to help county boards and ICFs determine their status in the transition to the OhioISP. The self-assessment is meant to provide agencies with a starting point and is certainly not inclusive of all activities to consider. The exercise is intended for agency use only - DODD will not request this information. Agencies should determine how your current assessment and planning processes work, so you can decide what policies or practices need to be updated.
Communication: Communicating with people receiving services, their family members, SSAs and QIDPs, providers, and other partners is an important part of the transition. Implementation plans should include details on communicating the transition to the OhioISP. Organizations using a third-party vendor, should communicate what to expect with this application vs. accessing plans through the DODD OhioISP if they move. DODD encourages holding regular engagement sessions with families, people receiving services, providers, and other partners.
DODD recently completed a video introduction to the OhioISP for families, advocates, and guardians. We hope this resource is helpful to include in your outreach.
Training and Resources: All SSAs and QIDPs will complete OhioISP Training: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. DODD recommends that newly hired SSAs and QIDPs complete training within the first 30 days of hire.
Organizations can conduct all training on their own or can access resources provided by DODD listed below:
Additional training materials and resources can be found on the DODD website.
OhioISP - Digital Version: As the OhioISP moves from a paper template, users may interact with the OhioISP digital version either through DODD, Brittco, or Primary Solutions. There is potential for future third-party vendor capacity, and DODD will support that as it becomes available. DODD will support county boards and ICFs through whichever vendor they choose and wants each organization to select the vendor that best meets their needs. No matter what platform is used, all SSAs and QIDPs must set up an OH/ID account, request access to the OhioISP, and log at least once into the OhioISP using the DODD platform. This will allow the transmission of information from the third-party vendor to DODD.
Continuous Feedback: DODD looks forward to receiving and learning from your ongoing feedback on how the transition to the OhioISP is going for your organization, the people receiving services, their families, providers, and other stakeholders. Please send any questions or comments to OhioISP@dodd.ohio.gov.
|
|
|
|
Like Director's Corner? Tell your friends to subscribe.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
