Kevin J. Mahoney – författare

Ten years after the results of the Cash and Counseling Demonstration and Evaluation were released, this book assesses the impact of this study, which developed individualized plans for helping people with disabilities to stay independent in the community. The study was the first wide-scale test of people with disabilities managing their own budgets and results from the random-controlled trial demonstrated significant positive outcomes, encouraging the US federal and state governments to provide this option as part of their community-based care programs. This volume looks at what people with disabilities and their caregivers are saying about this option ten years removed from the study, and what the latest research shows in terms of what it will take to improve this approach, making the option available for all people with disabilities. The contributions also discuss what needs remain unmet even when people can manage their own budgets, and present participants’ and their family caregivers’ views on what support broker activities really help (or hurt). Finally, the book summarizes the results of a project involving the Council of Social Work Education and nine schools of social work to develop modules to train future social workers on person-centred planning and participant direction.Of interest to those researchers studying social care with a focus on disabilities, this book would also be of use to those training social workers and support staff. The chapters in this book were originally published in the Journal of Gerontological Social Work and Home Health Care Services Quarterly.

Ten years after the results of the Cash and Counseling Demonstration and Evaluation were released, this book assesses the impact of this study, which developed individualized plans for helping people with disabilities to stay independent in the community. The study was the first wide-scale test of people with disabilities managing their own budgets and results from the random-controlled trial demonstrated significant positive outcomes, encouraging the US federal and state governments to provide this option as part of their community-based care programs. This volume looks at what people with disabilities and their caregivers are saying about this option ten years removed from the study, and what the latest research shows in terms of what it will take to improve this approach, making the option available for all people with disabilities. The contributions also discuss what needs remain unmet even when people can manage their own budgets, and present participants’ and their family caregivers’ views on what support broker activities really help (or hurt). Finally, the book summarizes the results of a project involving the Council of Social Work Education and nine schools of social work to develop modules to train future social workers on person-centred planning and participant direction.Of interest to those researchers studying social care with a focus on disabilities, this book would also be of use to those training social workers and support staff. The chapters in this book were originally published in the Journal of Gerontological Social Work and Home Health Care Services Quarterly.

Relates how the self-direction movement was developed, the research that supports it, how the model has spread across the country and the globe, and recommendations and prospects for the future.In the past, when people with disabilities and older adults needed help with activities of daily living and navigating their communities, they rarely had any choice about who helped them, when that support was delivered, or what the worker would or would not do. The self-direction movement changed all that by offering people the option to select their own workers and even create an individualized budget to help them live more independently. Written by experts who played a key part in the growth, evaluation, and dissemination of this revolutionary approach, Self-Direction describes the development of this movement through the authors' personal accounts. Also included are stories from actual participants in the movement who benefitted from this approach and from policymakers who saw how self-direction could help address states' problems. The book's conclusion discusses recommendations that can improve the way self-direction is delivered and how to spread its message so that all people with disabilities can have this choice.